


Pride, Prejudice, and Progeny

by Zoa



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Babies, Ben and Rey are adults when that happens, Eventual mild smut, F/M, Lost Love, Parenthood, Pregnancy, Reference to/Mentions of underage sex, References to Abuse, Rekindled Relationship, Secret Child, Teen Pregnancy, Unplanned Pregnancy, brief references to drug use/distribution, cuz rey doesn't have a great life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:00:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 24,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25248826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zoa/pseuds/Zoa
Summary: At sixteen, Rey Johnson ends up pregnant by her seventeen year old boyfriend, Ben Solo. But the two are torn apart before Rey can tell Ben about her pregnancy.Fourteen years later, Rey and Ben’s child is on the hunt for their dad. They find him - a junior partner in a big time law firm and running for senator - and run away to meet him on the other side of the country.The former sweethearts are drawn together again, connected by the child Rey kept secret. Old feelings resurface, but as Rey and Ben grow closer, his ambition, her distrust, and outside influences may be burdens too heavy for the new family to bear.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 178
Kudos: 289





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! Yes, a new WIP by yours truly, even though I've just scratched the surface of finishing my other ones. Ah, well. The good news is that I have almost half the chapters for this one already written out, so once-a-week updates shouldn't be a problem (fingers crossed).
> 
> Enjoy!

The test mocked Rey as she stared at it, the pink plus sign much too cheerful a color for her mood. 

She was pregnant.

“Oh, my dear child.” Maz sighed and put a hand on Rey’s shoulder. “Do you know who the father is?”

Rey nodded, unable to speak. The father was the first boy - the only boy - she’d ever been with. There were too many emotions, too many thoughts going through her head. How had this happened? They’d used protection. Ben had used a condom. It must have had a hole or… or something. 

“Do you want it?” Maz asked gently. 

The buzzing in Rey’s ears, the fuzziness in her head, the multitude of thoughts swirling through the air like a tornado all stopped.

Did she? Rey looked at the test. That little pink plus sign was hers. Hers and Ben’s. 

_Ben’s_. 

The answer was clear. 

“Yes.”

“Then you should tell the father.” Rey looked at Maz with wide, frightened eyes. Her new foster mother gave her a kind, patient smile. “He needs to know, child.”

“He’s on the other side of the country, Maz.”

“Would you feel right if you didn’t tell him?” 

No. She wouldn’t. But she was terrified. Everything she was feeling and thinking must have read on her face because Maz exhaled and drew Rey into a tight hug. As soon as Maz’s arms circled around her, Rey broke, tears spilling down her cheeks and soaking Maz’s loud sweater. 

“It’s alright, dear,” Maz soothed, hugging Rey tighter. “It will be alright.”

****

The story was almost a cliched one: a poor, orphaned girl bonding with a rich, bad boy. There was something about him, though. A familiarity which juxtaposed his mysteriousness and drew Rey to him like a moth to a flame.

The first time she’d laid eyes on him was at, of all things, a summer community scavenger hunt in Chandrila’s biggest park. She’d come to find out later it had been hosted by his mother as some kind of campaign thing. 

Wanting to get away from Unkar - her guardian; not that he deserved the title - for a little while and learn about the city she’d just moved to, Rey had decided to go. She wanted to scope out what kind of people lived in Chandrila. 

She got lost. 

Ben had found her sitting against a tree with a slightly sprained ankle but a knapsack full of the hunt’s treasures; the most anyone found. 

His long, dark hair hung over his eyes and hid his ears. His band shirt - one she hadn’t heard of, The Knights of Ren - was a bit tattered like his dark jeans, but in the on-purpose kind of way found in those dark, emo stores at the mall, not in the can’t-afford-new-ones kind of way like Rey’s moth eaten cotton dress and her shoes that were too small.

He carried her back to the path, piggy back, and once she was safe, disappeared into the crowd of scavenger seekers.

Rey didn’t think she’d ever see him again. 

She was wrong. 

They met again in detention at Chandrila High. He’d been passing edibles around and she’d mouthed off to a teacher. They were the only two in the library being watched by old Mr. Tekka, supposedly to do their homework and ruminate on their sins. Of course neither one of them did. 

He asked her how her ankle was, expressing more care for her than anyone had her entire life. 

Rey spent the entire period hiding behind a bookcase, talking with Ben while Tekka napped. He became her one and only friend that afternoon. 

He was lonely, like her, and resentful. His family was well known; his mother was the state's senator, his father a war hero. Ben was the product of a political dynasty and was expected to act like it. So he hid beneath layers of anger and rebellion against his parents. 

Except with her. For some reason, maybe desperation for someone to talk to, he opened up to her far more quickly than she did him. But she had more physical scars to hide than he did. 

All the same, it didn’t take long for Rey to give him her secrets. That her parents had gone on some drug induced bender and killed themselves in a car accident, leaving her with Unkar. 

Unkar was… bad. He hit her, sometimes. Most of the time it was verbal. Ben wasn’t so happy when she told him that. He said if she ever came to school with bruises, he would make sure Unkar never touched her again. 

But Unkar had another problem, one which Rey feared more now that she had someone she cared about, and who cared about her. 

She’d been dragged around the country because of Unkar’s gambling debts. He was being chased in every region by bookies and mobsters and loan sharks. They didn’t stay in one place long. 

So Rey never got to say goodbye to Ben. 

****

Leia Organa answered Rey’s call with a tired hello.

“Hi, um, is Ben there?” Rey bounced her knee and chewed her bottom lip, hoping he was, hoping he’d be there and he’d understand and he’d want this. Because she did. She wanted this. 

“No. I’m afraid he’s not. He’s away." 

“Away?”

Leia sounded somewhat uncomfortable. “He’s… he’s gone to live with his unc- to military school. I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name. Who’s calling?”

Rey’s blood froze.

His uncle. Military school. Ben was with his uncle who ran a military school. 

His parents had threatened to send him there if he ever acted up again. Had he? Had he done something after she’d left? Like a stone sinking into her gut, Rey wondered if it was because of her.

Regardless of the reason, Ben was miserable and she was about to deal him an even bigger blow that would probably alter the course of his life. 

“Nobody.” She coughed to clear the thickness in her throat. “Nobody.” She hung up. 

Rey couldn’t tell him. Not now. Maybe not ever. 

****

After the baby was born, and much coaxing from Maz, Rey gathered the courage to try again. 

“You’ve reached the Solo residence, this is Leia.” 

Ben’s mom sounded more cheerful this time, which raised Rey’s hopes. 

“Hi, may I speak with Ben, please?” 

“No, I’m sorry. He's not here. Are you a friend of his?” 

“Um, yes. I knew him at Chandrila High.” Rey’s anxiety spiked again. “Can you tell me where I can reach him?” 

“Well, I’m afraid you won’t be able to. He’s at bootcamp.” 

“Bootcamp?” Rey repeated, her voice faltering. 

“The Marines,” Leia announced proudly. “He joined up a few weeks ago.I’m sure you know how he struggled in school. I’m so happy to say that he’s finally found stability and focus. It’s been such a hard road for him… I’m sorry, I’m babbling. What was your name again?”

Rey looked up as Maz came in, carrying Breha in her arms. The little one was fast asleep now but in a few minutes she’d be screaming for her mother.

This was a mistake. Ben was happy. No more trouble or strife. He was at peace.

It wasn’t fair to tell him. He’d moved on, the way people were supposed to after high school. He’d forgotten all about the thin, freckled, abused girl. Just like he should have. 

He had a future now. A good one. Rey knew a baby didn’t fit into that picture.

  
Rey’s throat closed up. “No one. I mean, it’s not important. I was just hoping to catch up.” Rey picked at a loose string on the armchair she sat in. A tear dropped onto her wrist.

“Oh, well, is there anything you’d like me to tell him?”

_He’s a father to a baby girl. She looks just like him._ “Could you… could you tell him that an old friend says ‘good luck’? And they hope he’s happy?”

“Yes, of course… dear, you sound so familiar. Have we-”

Rey slammed the phone into its cradle. Her hands were shaking as she lifted them to her face. They came away wet. 

She would have to do this without him. She _would_ do this without him.

“Well, child?” Maz tiptoed up. The baby was still asleep. Rey sniffed and stood, reaching for her child. She needed to hold her. Maz watched her carefully as she handed the baby over. “Was he cruel?” 

Rey shook her head, eyes fastened on her baby girl. “No. He wasn’t even there. Again. He’s at bootcamp. The Marines. His life… I can’t upset him. Or his plans. It’s not fair. He’s got so much going for him. He’s worked too hard and I’d just be causing him more trouble.”

“He’s the father of your child, Rey,” Maz put a wrinkled hand on Rey’s shoulder. “He should know. He has as much of a stake in her life as you do. As much responsibility.”

For a moment Rey wavered. Only for a moment.

“No.” 

“Rey…”

“No, Maz. I’ve tried. It won’t work. This is better. Just her and me.” Rey kissed Bree’s forehead gently. “That’s the way I want it.”

Maz snorted. “Well, you’re not gonna get it.” Before Rey could protest that she wasn’t going to try to call Ben again, Maz held up a hand and continued. “I mean me. If you think I’m going to let you go out into the world with a baby all on your own, girl, you have another thing coming. You’re staying right here. With me. Where I can keep an eye on you both.”

More tears filled Rey’s eyes and threatened to douse little Breha. “Do you mean it?” she asked, unable to raise her voice above a whisper. “I can stay? Permanently?”

“Yes, child,” Maz said with a gentle, watery smile as she reached up to wipe away Rey’s tears. “Yes.”

****

**Fourteen Years Later**

“Breha Johnson! Did you forget to do your math homework again?” Rey shook her head as she perused the mess of algebra equations scattered across the well-used, oak dining table. The answer came weakly down the stairs from her teenage daughter’s bedroom.

“Um… maybe?”

Rey looked at the ceiling in exasperation. “Did you forget on purpose?”

There was a long pause before she heard the response. “No?”

“How many times have I told you? Just because it’s the last day of school, _does not_ mean you can skip homework, Bree!” 

“Moooom!”

“No! Now get down here and get started! I will drive you to school so you can finish on the way.” Rey organized the homework as she spoke, clicking her tongue at the haphazard way Bree had left it. This was the ritual every summer: Bree would leave her last day’s homework - from the class she least liked - on the table as if she’d been about to do it, and then forget, often on purpose. Rey would have to drive her to school and help her and probably do a couple equations for her. But that was their secret. 

“Okay, okay, I’m coming!” A thundering noise from the staircase followed by a loud thud announced Bree’s entrance. Rey turned and fixed a stern eye on the girl. Her wild, curly dark hair was done up in a fairly neat braid aided by at least ten colorful barrettes. The sweatshirt and jeans Rey had bought her for the school year were just a tiny bit short, telling Rey she’d have to go on another scavenging hunt through the bins at the thrift store. Another year, another growth spurt. Rey idly wondered if Bree would end up as tall as her father. She would definitely be taller than Rey.

“Can I at least eat something first?” Bree whined. 

“No. I’m gonna make you starve.” Rey pointed at an already waiting bowl of oatmeal on the table. Bree pounced on it like she hadn’t eaten in days. The girl had inherited her mother’s figure and voracious appetite. “Honestly, you’d think you lived in a gulag.”

“Where’s Maz?” Bree asked around a mouthful of oatmeal, not bothering to respond to her mother’s sarcasm. 

“She went to check on Mrs. Mothma. Poor thing’s hip’s out again. These are quadratic equations. You should have been able to do these problems on your own.” Rey held up one of the sheets. “I _know_ you can do them.”

Bree managed to look guilty. “I know…”

“So why didn’t you?”

Her daughter slowly replaced her spoon into the now empty bowl. “I got distracted. There’s been, um, something on my mind lately. I’ve been kind of afraid to ask you about it.”

Rey let out a breath and sat down across from Bree. “Is it about a boy?” She’d been dreading this day. The day her daughter would get hyper-fixated on some guy at school, probably one she shouldn’t, and Rey would need to navigate entirely new waters of parenthood. But, much to her surprise, Bree shook her head no. Rey’s heart rate skyrocketed because if it wasn’t a boy then what in heaven’s name was causing her daughter to look so nervous? Rey braced herself for the worst, though what the worst was she couldn’t guess. “What is it?”

Bree looked at her warily and then reached into her jeans pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. She slid it across the table to Rey, who picked it up with a frown. What in the world?

When she unfolded the paper, the world seemed to cave in around her. 

It was a print out of an online article by the _Chandrila Times_ , one Rey had been reading the night before. The headline read: 

**BEN SOLO ANNOUNCES SENATE RUN**

In the byline was a quote from Ben, something about politics running in his family. Beneath that was a picture of him, serious and frowning in an perfectly tailored suit as he spoke with a group of reporters on Chandrila’s courthouse steps. His hair was in a shorter style than Rey recalled him liking. There was a tall, thin, sickly looking man behind him, who the caption under the photo explained was Ben’s boss and mentor, Jonathan Snoke.

Sometimes, when she missed him the most, or in a moment of weakness and she needed to remind herself she had made the right decision, Rey looked Ben up. It was easy. He’d made quite the name for himself over the last fourteen years. 

He’d spent four years in the Marines and been deployed twice, coming back the second time severely injured, leaving him scarred but a hero after saving his squad from an ambush. After his recovery, he’d attended law school. It made sense. He had a talent for argument. Rey remembered all the disagreements they’d had and even then wondered if he started half of them because he enjoyed it. Bree had inherited the same trait.

After graduating, Ben was snatched up by one of the foremost law firms in Chandrila, going on to have a successful career. And now he was jumping into politics, just like his mom. It was his destiny. 

“You fell asleep on the couch last night and left the page open on the computer.” Bree said. Rey barely heard her through the roaring in her ears. “Mom.” Rey looked up from the article; she already knew what was coming next. “Is he my dad?”

Rey couldn’t breath. _This_ was the day she’d been dreading, one that gave her more nightmares than she’d like to admit. She’d always managed to dance around the conversation. It had been easy when Bree was younger but Rey knew she wouldn’t be able to escape the truth forever. Here was the end of the line.

“Why…” Rey’s voice cracked and she coughed to clear it. “Why do you ask?”

Bree looked disappointed and that stung but she produced something else from her pocket, a picture. Rey’s heart sunk. It was one of her favorites with Ben. They’d snuck out of school and gone to a local food truck park for lunch. Someone had offered to take the photo for them - she didn’t remember who, but remembered them saying they’d never seen a couple so happy - and the way Ben was looking at her… Rey still got butterflies when she looked at it. They were young and he looked a little different - no scar, thinner, kind of dorky but to be honest Rey had liked that about him - but he was the same guy in the newspaper article. No question. 

“Where did you get that?” she whispered, reaching for it with a shaking hand. Bree handed it over. Rey didn’t keep any of her high school things where Bree could find them. They were locked away in a box in her closet. She couldn’t recall why this picture wasn’t in it. 

“Remember that book report I had to do on _Pride and Prejudice_? You said I could use your copy.” Bree pointed at the photo. “That was in it.”

Of course. Now Rey remembered. She’d been looking at the picture one day and Bree had called for her. In a rush, Rey had hidden the picture in the pages of her favorite novel. She’d forgotten to put it back in the box.

“Oh.”

“Is he?” Bree repeated. “Is he my dad?”

Rey had a feeling they were going to be late for school. “Yes.”

Her daughter sat back in her chair. “Wow.” She breathed. “Does he know about me?”

Rey shook her head and covered her mouth with her hand, attempting to stem the tide of tears that would inevitably soak her cheeks. 

Bree’s young face clouded over. “Why? Why didn’t you tell him? Why didn’t you tell me?” She was angry. Of course she was. Rey would be, too. All the same, Rey flinched. 

“I…” She took a deep, shuddering breath but still didn’t feel like her lungs were working. “I tried to tell him. But I found out about you after moving here. And Ben… he was… he’d moved on. I was so young… we both were. There was too much distance and… I… I tried to make the right decision, Bree. For all of us. For you.”

A heavy minute passed between them. Rey waited with a thundering heart as she waited for her daughter to either say she understood or she hated her.

Bree said neither. 

“I want to meet him.”

“No.” The word came out faster and harsher than it should have and Bree scowled. Rey placed both palms on the table in an attempt to ground and calm herself. “I mean, I don’t think that would be a good idea.” 

“You don’t get to tell me what you think a good idea is,” Bree snapped. “It’s your fault he doesn’t know me! That’s my dad! I want to know him. I want him to know me!” She hit her own chest. Rey could see the tears swimming in her daughter’s dark eyes, so like Ben’s in that they hid nothing and held everything. Rey could see Bree’s pain as plain as day and it broke her heart. 

“Baby, I know…” Rey reached forward and tried to take Bree’s hand but it was jerked away. 

“No, you don’t. I grew up without a dad. Who maybe would have been happy to have me. Who maybe wanted me. But he doesn’t even know I exist. Because of you.” She shot out of her chair, sending it flying back and stomped out of the room to charge up the stairs. The sound of Bree’s bedroom door slamming shook the house. 

Stunned and numb, Rey stared at the table. The grains blurred together as she finally broke down. She covered her face with her hands and cried, her shoulders shaking in great, heaving sobs. 

What had she done? Her daughter hated her. She truly hated her and Rey didn’t know how to fix it. 

A minute later, Bree reappeared and Rey hoped she’d sit down and talk but the angry flush on her pale face dashed all hope away. Bree grabbed her backpack and stuffed her math homework and the picture of Rey and Ben inside it. 

“I’m taking the bus to school.” She mumbled and was out of the house before Rey could even say goodbye. The next second Maz entered the room with a bewildered expression. 

“What’s got her all riled up?” she chuckled but the laughter died when Rey held up the article on Ben. The tiny woman sank into another dining chair. “Oh, my.”

“I screwed up, Maz.” Rey said sadly, fresh tears dripping onto the table. “I messed it all up.” She grasped onto Maz’s hand tightly when the old woman reached for her. “I thought I did the right thing. Now she hates me.”

“She doesn’t hate you,” Maz soothed. “She’s angry. Give her time. Let her go to school. Once she’s back, you two can decide what to do.”

“She wants to contact him.” Rey whispered. “What if… what if he rejects her? He’s going into politics, Maz. Bree is…” she swallowed. “Bree’s a skeleton in his closet. They’ll use her against him. They’ll hurt her. I can’t allow that.”

Maz’s fingers tightened around Rey’s hand in a reassuring way. “I don’t think that's your choice, my child. Bree wants to know her father. She has a right to. Be brave, love. It’ll work out.”

Rey hoped Maz was right. She desperately, dearly hoped. Because if she wasn’t, Rey would have to deal with more than an angry daughter.

* * *

“Good afternoon everyone, this is your captain speaking. We have reached altitude and it is now safe to take off your seatbelts. The weather is clear and we are on track to make our schedule landing in Chandrila. Hit those beaches for me; the water’s beautiful this time of year.”

Various clicks echoed around the cabin as the passengers removed their seatbelts and relaxed. Bree did the same and lifted the cover over her window. White, fluffy clouds filled her gaze and she sat back with a sigh.

A few minutes later one of the flight attendants came around offering passengers free earbuds for the on-flight entertainment. 

“Hello there,” she greeted Bree and glanced around. “Are you all by yourself, dear?”

“No. My mom’s, um, in the bathroom.” A little white lie never hurt anyone. Never mind she'd told a million of them already that day. 

“Girl’s trip?” the attendant asked with a smile.

Bree shook her head and an excited grin bloomed on her face. She didn't have to lie about this. “I’m going to see my dad.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben Solo gets the surprise of his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I know almost nothing about lawyering so expect some creative license on how law firms/law in Chandrila works in this fic 😂

In the forty-eight hours after the article broke that Ben was running for senate, he’d had no peace. Every other minute some reporter was calling - either at home or work - to ask questions and get quotes on everything from political policies to his opinion on puppies. T he outright announcement had thrown the city into chaos. 

Most of all Ben’s own mother. She’d been shocked to hear her son, who had previously not shown any interest in political office and in fact had considered it anathema to his life, was suddenly eyeing her old job. 

_“I don’t know if I should feel threatened or flattered,”_ she’d laughed when he’d told her his plans. _“But I have to ask, was this your idea or Snoke’s?”_

Leia had never liked Snoke. Never mind he had the best law firm in the city had given Ben the most career opportunities. 

There’s just something about him, she’d groused. 

“He kind of suggested it and I thought it was a good idea.” Ben talked over his mother’s protest. “C’mon, mom. It’s not like you didn’t want this.”

_“Maybe not. But I want_ you _to want it more. Otherwise, it’s futile.”_

That had made him think.

Why did he think it was a good idea? He had a good job - a great one, in fact, which he loved. He was successful and made good money. He’d garnered a reputation for almost never losing cases, no matter how the odds were stacked against him. Which was one of the reasons he’d made junior partner, with a good possibility of getting his name up on the building alongside Snoke’s one day. Political office hadn’t ever really appealed to him but his main goal in life had been to make a difference; what better way to do that than literal policy making? As Snoke said, affect more than just one person at a time?

It was everything he wanted. 

The only thing he could say was missing in his life was a romantic partner. He wasn’t necessarily against the idea of settling down; he just hadn’t found the right person yet. He’d thought at one time he had, but that was years ago. Not meant to be. 

However, he had no trouble finding dates. Or enjoying them. 

Like the woman he was with now. Who he very much wanted to take inside his two-bedroom, corner apartment and to bed. She was one of the paralegals at the firm and they’d flirted on and off for weeks. Brunette, tall, a lithe build. She was his type. 

And she wanted him. 

She wouldn’t get off him, actually, touching and kissing him all the way up the elevator to his floor. That Friday the firm had a party after hours to celebrate the retirement of Moden Canady, one of the longest standing associates at the firm. But that was all he was; an associate. Ben and everyone else knew he’d aspired to more. It had only taken Ben five years to make junior partner; Canady had been there fifteen.

_Maybe if he’d actually won cases, he would have gotten it._ Ben thought viciously as the elevator opened and Ginna, his date, pulled him out into the hall. 

“Which one?” She asked, pointing at the doors around them before dragging him into a sloppy kiss. 

“Mmm, 1010,” he mumbled, unabashedly sliding his hands down her back, already searching for the zipper to her black, business-casual sheathe dress. She didn’t protest but she pulled out of his hold with a sly smile. 

“So impatient…”

“You have no idea,” he replied and took her by the hand to lead her down the hall to his apartment. His keys were ready in his other hand, his focus on getting Ginna inside as quickly as possible. Ben was so fixated, he almost didn’t see the small figure slumped against his apartment door. Then it moved and he managed to avoid stepping on it just in time, jumping back into Ginna. 

“What the fuck?”

Ginna gasped. “Is that… a kid?”

Ben knelt slowly and sure enough, beneath a hooded sweatshirt that had seen better days, was a young girl - no more than thirteen or fourteen years old - fast asleep on the floor. 

What was she doing? He looked around, searching for anyone who might know. The hall was empty; it was late, almost one in the morning. She was all by herself with nothing but a tattered backpack that was propped under her head as a makeshift pillow. There was something about her freckled face that struck a chord with Ben but he couldn’t say why. While he hated to wake her up - she looked exhausted - he had to find out why she was there and get her the help she needed. 

With that in mind, Ben reached out and gently shook her on the shoulder. “Hey, kid. Wake up.” 

The girl stirred and, slowly, her eyes opened. They were dark and clear; like looking in a mirror but one that could read your soul. When they focused on him, they widened and she shot up like a firework. She pushed her hood down, revealing dark hair which flounced around her face in unruly curls, and lifted a hand. 

“Hi.”

Ben rose, amused by the casual greeting. He stuck his hands in his trouser pockets and grinned. “Hi.” She wouldn’t stop staring at him like she knew him and hadn’t seen him in a long time. But he didn’t know her. At least, he couldn’t remember her. Was she a client’s daughter? 

“What’s your name, honey?” Ginna asked kindly and it seemed the girl noticed her for the first time because she kind of jumped and her pale face flushed deeply.

“Um, Bree.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear - revealing them to be kind of oversized. Ben knew the struggle. 

“What were you doing sleeping in front of my door, Bree?” He asked with concern. Maybe she had gotten apartment numbers confused and was lost. It was a big building. 

“I was waiting and I got tired.” She answered in a matter-of-fact way that reminded him of another person he’d known years ago. Ben shook away that memory and frowned. 

“Who were you waiting for?”

“You.”

Ben exchanged a glance with Ginna. “Me?” he repeated as he turned his attention back to the girl. “Why?”

_She must be a client’s child._ Ben wracked his brain for who; she was familiar, like a word on the tip of the tongue. 

“You’re Ben Solo.” She said, as if that was the explanation. 

“Yeah, that’s me,” he affirmed slowly. The girl chewed at her lower lip before she reached into her backpack and pulled out a photo. She held it to her chest, hiding the picture. Her breaths came in quick, short puffs, like she’d just run a mile. “Hey, sweetheart, it's okay.” Ben tried to put a comforting hand on her shoulder but she looked at it like it was a snake. He removed it, bewildered. “Do you need to call someone?” 

She shook her head. “N-no. I need to tell you something.” 

Ben eyed her warily, no clue where the hell this was going. “Okay. Go ahead.” 

The girl’s eyes flicked toward Ginna but instantly refocused on him. 

“I…” she faltered and he nodded encouragingly. She looked at him like he lit the world and, after taking a deep breath, continued. “My name is Breha Johnson. And I’m your daughter.”

A laugh bubbled out of Ben’s chest before he could stop it. Hux must be playing a prank on him. A weird prank. “What?”

The girl swallowed, nervous again, and held out the picture she was holding with a shaking hand. He took it and his heart stopped when he saw the content. 

“My mom is Rey Johnson.” Bree continued. “She was your high school girlfriend. She had me when she was sixteen. She moved away before she found out she was pregnant. She never told you about me because… I guess because she was afraid.” 

The earth shifted beneath his feet and the walls curved in an unnatural way as his vision warped and his pulse went nuclear. 

_Rey._

If this was a prank, he didn't know how it was possible. There’s no way Hux knew about Rey. As he moved his eyes between the girl and the picture, that nagging in the back of Ben’s head she was familiar bloomed into comprehension. She had his eyes, his ears (he was sorry for that), his hair. But she had her mother’s face. Rey’s freckles. Her mannerisms. It seemed impossible. It should have been impossible, except Ben could see it all laid out in the photo. Bree was a perfect combination of he and Rey.

He passed a hand over his face and took a step back. “I need a second,” he rasped and wandered down the hall a few paces. Rey had a kid. And that kid was on his doorstep. That kid was apparently _his._

This… this was…

“Ben.” Ginna appeared next to him. “Ben, are you okay? Is this possible?”

“Um,” he looked at the picture and remembered the day he and Rey had… well, apparently conceived a child together. Fourteen years ago. He’d used a condom he’d found in his dad’s truck. Honestly, he’d grabbed it without thinking. For all he knew it’d had a thousand holes in it. “Yeah, yeah, I think it is. Uh,” he didn’t know how he looked to Ginna but was fairly sure shocked would fit the bill. “I need a raincheck on tonight.”

Ginna glanced back at Bree, who was standing awkwardly hugging her backpack at his door, and nodded. “No problem. Hey,” she put a hand on his arm, “even if you think this is real, get it checked. People do strange things when they think they can get a hand out. And you’re in a major spotlight now.”

While he knew she was right, Ben couldn’t help getting defensive for Rey and Bree’s sake. “Rey wouldn’t do something like that.”

“I’m not saying she did, but who’s to say this girl is actually Rey’s kid?” Ginna pat his arm. “Just make sure before you do anything drastic. But do get the poor thing something to eat. I can hear her stomach growling from here.”

She said goodbye and set off, passing a wave at Bree, who waved back with a shy smile. Ben made his way back to his apartment and looked at Bree - his alleged daughter - for a moment. Her eyes were wide and expectant and a little scared. 

“You hungry?” he asked with a jerk of his chin. Her entire body relaxed and she nodded eagerly, loose curls bouncing around her face. 

“Starved.”

Ben nodded and reached around her to unlock and open his door. “Come on inside, kid, and I’ll treat you to the best day old pizza you’ve ever had.”

****

Hours later, Bree was snoozing away with a full stomach in Ben’s guest room. He was still up; sleep wasn’t really an option for him at this point. Instead, he’d gone to his room and taken down his high school yearbook. He flipped through it for the only photo it held of Rey. Back then, she avoided anything social at the school, focused on remaining unnoticed and hiding the bruises she’d suffered from Unkar. Ben’s blood boiled anew at the thought of it. 

But as abruptly as she’d appeared in his life, Rey had vanished. After their first time together - their only time - Rey didn’t appear at school the next morning. Or the one after that. 

Ben got worried. He called her, only to find out the number was disconnected. Panicked, he went to her house. He tried knocking, calling for her, but there was nothing. Finally, he broke in. 

And someone called the cops on him. 

Thanks to his mother, the charges disappeared, but so did his hope he would find Rey, because Leia made good on her threat to send him to Uncle Luke’s military school. 

So, Rey didn’t have a portrait in the yearbook. 

The picture the book did have was of Rey smiling at the camera as she walked to her history class. He remembered it was history because he was the one who’d taken the photo. And he knew that smile was for him. 

A tremor went through his hand and he fisted it tight. If Bree was his daughter, why had Rey hidden her from him? Why hadn’t she contacted him? All those years and not a word. He thought she’d been forced to never call him by Unkar and that eventually she’d moved on. Was Bree right? Had Rey been afraid? She didn’t need to be afraid of him. She shouldn’t have been. 

Tomorrow he’d learn for sure if Bree was his and then…

He’d cross that bridge when he came to it.

****

“It’s a girl.” Dr. Amilyn Holdo, the Solo family’s private doctor, announced brightly as she walked into her office and sat down at her desk. “She’s yours, Ben. Not that you needed a blood test for that. She looks just like you.”

Ben sat numb in his chair on the other side of Holdo’s desk. Bree was outside with the receptionist, happily chatting away as Ben’s world was turned upside down. 

“So…” he gripped the arms of his chair so hard it creaked beneath his fingers. “What does that mean?” 

“It means you’re a daddy, hon’.” Dr. Holdo chuckled, her lavender bob bouncing against her temples. “And that your mother is going to be very, very happy. And livid that you knocked a girl up at seventeen but didn’t know, thus causing her fourteen years of being a grandmother.”

His mother. Fuck. 

“Thanks for reminding me of _that_ little problem, Amilyn.”

“That’s what I’m here for,” she smiled sweetly. “Now. What are you going to do with that darling child?”

Ben looked over his shoulder through the open door. Bree was still talking with the receptionist. When she noticed Ben watching her, she stopped and waved shyly. The corner of Ben’s mouth lifted in a half smile and he waved back. 

“I don’t know.”

“What about her mother?”

Ben scowled and turned around. Worry wove its way into his mind like a maggot. “She didn’t say if her mother had sent her. I don’t know where Rey is.”

If something had happened… Ben gripped the chair’s arms again in desperate search for an anchor.

The doctor hummed thoughtfully, bearing a frown of her own. “You should find that out first.”

“Yeah.” He nodded. “Yeah. Okay.” He stood up and rubbed his face. “Wow. I’m a dad.”

“Sure are, sugar. Now get out there and be one.”

****

By the time Ben and Bree left the doctor’s office, it was well after noon. Ben decided to take his daughter - an incredibly weird, but not unpleasant, thing to think - to one of his favorite spots in town. 

“This is the food truck park in the picture!” Bree exclaimed when Ben parked. She was right. He hadn’t even realized he’d taken her to the same spot he’d taken her mother. 

“Uh. Yeah. It is.”

“This is so cool!” She jumped out of Ben’s black Audi and was already running for the trucks before Ben could blink. He hurried to follow and caught up with her as she fell into line at the taco truck. 

A few minutes later they were seated at one of the many weathered wooden picnic tables scattered around the park, a tray full of tacos and other snacks laid out before them. Bree ate like her mother: like it was simultaneously her first and last meal. Ben watched in awe as the slight girl downed three tacos in succession. He might worry she had been malnourished but with Rey’s experiences he knew she’d never let a child of hers go hungry. 

Unless she wasn’t around. But he needed to ease himself into that question. 

Start slow. 

“Hey,” he cleared his throat. “I'm sorry about the test. I just needed to make sure… you know, just in case...” He winced and hoped she would understand. She seemed like a bright kid.

Bree shook her head. “I get it. Some girl shows up at your door claiming to be your daughter? I mean, it’s weird. I knew you’d probably want to make sure. I’m not mad, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Ben marveled at his daughter. “Thanks.” She was more than he expected, then again he wasn't sure what expectations he was supposed to have - if any - since he had no idea twenty-four hours ago she existed. 

“So, now that you know I’m really your kid,” Bree said, her voice muffled around a mouthful of taco, “do you like me?”

Thrown by the question, but only because he hadn’t considered the alternative, Ben stared at her for a second. “Yeah, yeah, of course I like you.”

Obvious relief passed over her face. She swallowed her bite. “I was kind of afraid you’d, I dunno, hate me or something.”

“Why would you think that?” Ben asked quietly. He hadn’t touched any of the food yet. 

Bree shrugged and went for the chips and guacamole Ben had bought. “Mom never talked about you. She never told me who you were or what you were like. I thought it was because you wouldn't want me if you knew.”

That burned. His own daughter had never known about him. Not even a little bit. And had assumed he’d abandoned her. Why had Rey let this happen? What the hell was she thinking?

But his ire over Rey’s decisions would have to wait. First, it was time to learn why his daughter had suddenly shown up. And hoped that she still had a mother he could be angry with. 

“About your mom,” he swallowed. “Is she… Is she okay?”

Bree paused, her hand hovering over the chips, and eyed him curiously. A second later a horrified expression appeared on her face and Ben's heart stopped. “Oh my god! I forgot. I didn’t turn airplane mode off on my phone when I landed. Shit! She’s gonna kill me!” She immediately dug into her backpack and pulled out her phone. 

“Don’t say shit.” Ben automatically responded and instantly froze at the shocking correction. Since when had he cared about bad language? His daughter didn’t seem to hear him, though. 

“Oh, noooo, no no no,” she groaned as she stared at her phone. “I have, like, five thousand missed calls and voicemails.” 

Somebody had to have left those calls.

“So your mom is okay?” Ben nudged. Bree gave him an odd look, like he was asking her if the moon was made of cheese.

“Yeah, she’s fine. Oh, man…” She whined a little as she looked at the phone like she thought it would bite her. Ben’s relief was short-lived because he had quickly realized exactly why Bree was so jittery. He narrowed his eyes. 

“She doesn’t know you’re here, does she.”

Bree didn’t have to say a word. Her expression was loud and clear. 

“Damn it, Bree!”

“Please don’t be mad!” She begged, her eyes brimming with tears. “Please. I just… I just wanted to know you and she didn’t want me to call you and I… I got mad and bought a plane ticket with my babysitting money.” 

Ben sighed and forced himself to calm down, rubbing his face with his hands. The situation was bad enough without him losing his temper. Even though his daughter had acted foolishly and probably scared her mother half to death. “I’m not mad. Okay, I am. But this is bad. You need to call her and let her know you’re safe.”

“I know.” Her voice was so small and she looked so defeated Ben had the urge to move from his side of the table to hers and wrap his arms around her so she felt safe again. But he stayed where he was, not sure if either of them were there yet. What he did do was reach across the table and take her hand. 

“Hey. I’m right here.”

A watery smile appeared on her face and she nodded. With a shaky breath, Bree put the phone down on the able and swiped through her favorite contacts to ‘Mom’, a heart and dancing lady emoji residing next to the word. Right as she dialed she muttered: 

“I’m so, so dead.”

_“Bree?”_

Rey’s voice came over the phone - Bree had put it on speaker for some reason - and Ben was transported back to high school, back to seeing her for the first time in the park, surrounded by trees and green grass and moss and rocks. His heart pounded against his chest, battering his ribcage. 

“Hey, mom.” Bree responded weakly. 

_“Oh my god, honey, are you alright? Where are you? What happened? We’ve been worried sick!”_

Rey was obviously crying, her voice thick and hoarse as if the tears had been non-stop. Ben imagined they had been. Another voice, older and cracked asked if it was really Bree. 

“Yeah, it’s me, Maz. I’m fine. I’m safe. I’m…” Bree glanced up at Ben and he swallowed, feeling as nervous as she looked. “I’m with my dad.”

Dead silence filled the air. 

_“You’re what?”_ Rey sounded shaken, her voice barely audible. 

“I got on a plane to Chandrila and found my dad.” Bree clarified. “He’s sitting across from me. Say hi.” She nodded at Ben who suddenly forgot how to say any words. The art of language had completely abandoned him.

“Um.” His voice cracked and he coughed before he tried again. “Hi, Rey.”

There was a sharp breath on the line but instead of the whispered reply he expected, he heard:

“ _Bree. Take this off speaker.”_

Red filled his vision and he snatched the phone away from Bree before she could move and turned the speaker function off himself. 

“Stay here.” He ordered. Bree nodded violently, her eyes wide. Ben strode away from the table, out of earshot of his daughter. He didn’t want her to hear what he was going to say next. 

He was about to use some foul language.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey receives a phone call that turns her life upside down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My family and I are moving this week through next week, so my updates may be scattered for awhile. I'm going to do my best, but, alas, life is a whirlwind I have very little (if any) control over. I hope y'all enjoy this update, though! Your comments, kudos, and everything in-between give me all the warm fuzzy feelings and I love ya for it! 🥰🥰🥰

When Bree didn’t come home from school, Rey wasn’t worried. She wasn’t worried when she got home from her job teaching art at the elementary school to not find her daughter sulking in her bedroom. She sent a text saying 'I love you' but wasn't surprised she didn't get a response. That was alright; Rey reminded herself to be patient. Bree needed time. 

She waited, assuming Bree had gone to the mall with some friends, to get her mind off the day’s trouble, as she had done before. But as the sun disappeared and evening turned to night and she still wasn’t home, worry became Rey's entire being, consuming her from the inside out. 

Calls went out. To Bree first, of course, who didn’t answer, but Rey wasn’t really surprised by that. Worried, but not surprised. To friends. To Bree’s school. The conversation with the school was really what caused Rey to panic. 

Bree never made it to school. 

No one had seen her all day. 

She was missing. 

****  


Rey called the police. The police went out searching and so did Rey and Maz. They gathered everyone they knew to look for Bree. Her friends, her friends’ families. Finn and Rose - Rey’s dearest friends and regular customers of Bree’s babysitting services - stayed with Rey for hours as she cried and waited for news of her child. 

No news came. 

Someone said no news was good news. Rey considered it hell. 

She barely slept that night. What she did manage was less like sleeping and more of a conscious doze. She was waiting for that phone call, that terrible phone call every parent has a terror of receiving. 

Rey would be forever grateful that the phone call she did get was from her daughter. 

Even if it was also the most unexpected. 

To hear Ben’s voice again had been… breathtaking. He sounded so much deeper than she remembered and the vibration thundered through her body. But hearing him also terrified her and she panicked, ordering Bree to turn off the speaker. 

The next thing Rey knew, Ben was shouting into the phone. 

_“What the fucking hell, Rey? I have a daughter?”_

“Can Bree hear you?” Rey demanded. The last thing she needed was her daughter hearing Ben scream obscenities. 

_“No. I walked away.”_

“Good. Thank you.” 

_“Can I go back to yelling at you?”_

“I’d prefer it if you didn’t.”

_“No promises, since you never fucking told me I have a kid.”_

“In my defense, this wasn’t how I wanted to tell you.” Rey sniffed and rubbed at the snot coming out of her nose with her sleeve. She was glad he couldn’t see what a mess she was. 

_“Oh, had you planned to tell me at some point? Maybe when she got married or had her own kid?”_ he snapped. Rey flinched. 

“I don’t know…” she murmured. “I’m sorry, Ben. I… I really am. But…” she swallowed, determined to get it out. “I tried to tell you. Twice. I called your house. The first time, your mom said you were at military school.” She choked the words out past a sob. “You were living your worst nightmare. How could I tell you that I was pregnant?”

_“What about the second time?”_

Rey sniffed. “After Bree was born. You’d joined the Marines. Leia said you were happy and focused. I didn’t want to take that away. You’d worked so hard…”

Silence filled her ear. It lasted so long Rey thought the connection had dropped. Then she heard him sigh heavily.

_“I wish you had told me. You should have told me. I would have helped. I would have wanted to be there for you. For her.”_

Rey closed her eyes and tried to breathe past the knot in her stomach and the lump in her throat. “I’m sorry.”

Another minute of quiet passed, during which Rey’s mind went wild with his possible responses. Everything from cursing her out again to yelling that he was sending Bree home and he never wanted to see either one of them again. 

It was neither. 

_“You named her Breha.”_ His voice was gentle. _“After my grandmother.”_

“I remembered how you talked about her.” Rey murmured. A melancholy smile lifted her mouth as she remembered the day Bree was born. She’d had the name picked out ever since she found out the child inside her was a girl. “She was special and I wanted our daughter to have a special name. Especially since I don’t have any family names.”

_“I’m glad you chose that one. It’s perfect. She’s perfect."_

Fourteen years of worry fell away in a burden Rey didn’t even know she’d been carrying. “Really?” she asked through fresh tears. “Do you mean it?”

_“Yeah,”_ he huffed a sort of breathless laugh. _“Yeah. I do. You did great.”_

“Thanks,” Rey murmured and was embarrassed that a blush heated her cheeks. At least he couldn’t see it. “Does that mean you’re not mad anymore?”

_“Oh no, I’m still mad at you. But,”_ he paused. “ _But I want to understand. Y'know... Bree said she thought you were afraid to tell me.”_

“She did?”

The child was more perceptive than was good for Rey. 

“ _She did. I don’t want you to be afraid, Rey. Not of me. I know I have a temper…”_

Rey gasped, horrified. “No, no, Ben! That’s not why! I _was_ afraid, but I was afraid you wouldn’t want her. That she and I would be too much. I didn’t want her to be rejected like… Like I had been.”

_“Rey, it was you. She came from you.”_

The words hung in space, heavy and wonderful. Rey didn’t know what to say. She wished she could go back in time and tell him everything. She wished she could scream at herself through the ether and tell sixteen-year-old Rey not to give up. To keep calling. To keep trying to reach Ben.

Maybe they would have been okay. Maybe she and Ben might have stayed together, maybe even gotten married… but it was useless to wonder about what might have been. There was no changing the past. Rey had made her decision and she would have to live with it. 

There was a beat before she finally found her voice again, though she struggled to speak past the lump in her throat.

“You’re okay with it, then? Having a kid?”

_“More than okay.”_

“Does that mean you want to be in her life?”

_“Hell, yes.”_

“What about your campaign?”

_“What about it?”_

“Won’t you be busy?”

_“I’ll make the time. Rey, I want this.”_

Rey took a breath. Part of her thought she was dreaming. This couldn’t be real. She was going to wake up two seconds from now in her bedroom, too sweaty because the AC had gone out again and given her a fever dream. But she counted those two seconds and even pinched herself. She was definitely awake.

_“Rey?”_

She jumped. “Uh, sorry. Okay, if you’re sure, then... then we need to figure out how it’ll work. Co-parenting.”

_“Yeah, we do. You should come out here. So we can talk about it.”_

“O-okay.” Rey’s heart leapt to her throat. Go there? Go to Chandrila? “Right. S-so I’ll get a flight. I probably need to bring Bree some clothes. Did she even pack a toothbrush?”

Ben laughed and Rey melted a little. _“No, there’s nothing in her backpack except math homework. Hey, Rey…”_

There was a change in his voice, like he was nervous. Rey frowned and sat up a little straighter in the armchair she’d fallen into when Bree called. “What is it? What’s wrong?” 

_“I’m sorry. I think this situation is kind of my fault. It_ IS _my fault.”_

“What? Ben, how in the world…”

_“If I had told someone about what Unkar was doing to you, he would have gotten arrested. He wouldn’t have taken you away. We would have been together when you found out. We would have… we would have been together…”_

Fresh tears pooled in Rey’s eyes and she covered her mouth to stifle a sob. “No, Ben. It’s not your fault. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

_“But I could have gotten you away from him. I could have brought you home with me. I could-”_

Rey shook her head even though he couldn’t see her. “Ben, stop, stop! It doesn’t matter anymore. What’s done is done. We need to focus on what’s best for Bree _now_.” She heard him take a shaky breath. 

_“You’re right, you’re right. First thing is to get you out here. I’ll pay for your flight.”_

“I can’t let you do that!” 

_“Too bad.”_

“Ben, I can pay for my own flight.” Rey scowled. Maz, who had discretely left the room when it was clear Rey needed privacy, had returned and now leaned against the living room doorway with raised brows. 

_“Let me do this for you, Rey. Please.”_

Because he hadn’t been allowed to do anything for fourteen years. She knew that’s what he was he thinking. Heart constricting in her chest, Rey immediately relented. 

“Okay.” She said in a small voice. 

_“Thank you,”_ Ben said with relief. _“I’ll give you back to Bree now. I can get your information from her?”_

“Yeah, yeah. Um, just have her give you my number and text me when… when you’ve arranged everything.” 

_“I-I will. Goodbye, Rey.”_

“Bye, Ben.” Rey murmured. 

He lingered on the line and Rey sensed he had something else he wanted to say but whatever it was never came. Instead she heard the phone being moved and the next voice she heard was her daughter’s.

“ _Hi, mom. Is… is everything okay?”_

All Rey’s relief that Bree was safe - with her father no less - morphed into absolute fury at her daughter’s reckless behavior. 

“With your father? Maybe. With us? Absolutely not. What in the world were you thinking running off like that and flying across the country? Do you know how worried Maz and I have been? I called the police! We had search parties! I thought you were…were…” Rey closed her eyes and put a shaking hand to her forehead. She couldn’t say it out loud; even the thought made her sick. Her daughter was crying on the other side of the call but in the distance she heard Ben murmur something comforting. 

_“I’m sorry, mom.”_ Bree sobbed. _“I didn’t mean to scare you. Really. I was going to text you when I landed but I forgot.”_

Rey took a few deep breaths to calm down. She reminded herself that Bree’d had a rough time of it, too. Could Rey say she wouldn’t have done the same in a similar situation? She remembered her futile search for her own parents; if she knew one of their names, she might just run after them as Bree had after Ben. It was still the wrong thing to do but Rey understood.

“Okay, baby. It’s okay. I mean, it’s not, you’re definitely grounded until you’re eighteen for taking ten years away from my life, but we’ll deal with that later. Now, listen, I’m going to fly out there so your dad and I can talk and get things sorted.”

_“Really?”_

Rey flinched and had to pull the phone away from her ear because Bree had screeched into it. 

“Ow. Yes. I’ll bring some clothes for you, too. Give your dad my phone number and email okay?”

_“Okay!”_

Even through the phone Rey could feel her daughter’s excited vibrating. Regardless of how they’d gotten there, Rey was glad Bree was happy. That Ben had been good to her. It was everything she could have hoped for. It was _more_ than she had hoped for. 

_“Mom?”_

“What is it, hon?”

Bree’s voice lowered to a conspiratorial level. _“Are you and dad getting back together?”_

“Breha!” Rey spluttered at the same time she heard Ben go through a loud coughing fit. So Bree hadn’t been that discrete. Of course not. “That is… that is not something… we’re not… no.”

_“Oh.”_ The disappointment in her daughter’s voice was palpable. _“But maybe?”_

“Breha.” Rey warned.  


_“Okay, okay.”_

“I’ll let you go now. Behave for… for your father, okay?” Rey couldn’t believe that was a thing she was actually saying. 

_“I will! I promise! Love you, mom!”_

The resiliency of her daughter to be so jovial despite the fact that Rey was half-serious about grounding her for life was awe inspiring. 

“Love you, too, baby.”

Bree hung up and Rey was left with the new, frightening reality. Ben knew about and wanted to be in Bree’s life. That was… huge. 

“So?” Maz waddled further into the room. 

“She’s with Ben. She’s safe and… and he wants to work things out. To be her dad.”

A satisfied, nearly smug smile cracked Maz’s wrinkled face. “Is it too late to say I told you so?”

Rey rolled her eyes. “Yes.”

“I’m going to say it anyway. I told you so. Now, I’ll make the calls and let everyone know your daughter is fine.” 

“Right.” Rey let out a slow, exasperated breath. “What a mess. Wait, what do you want me to do?”

“Clean yourself up and go pack the nicest things you have,” Maz rubbed her hands together. “Definitely the green blouse. You look so lovely in that. He’ll be floored when he sees you.”

“Oh no, not you, too.” Why didn’t it surprise her Maz was playing matchmaker? Rey stood and put her hands up. “Maz, Ben and I are not getting back together. It’s not even a question! We’ve got totally different lives and live on opposite ends of the country.” She rubbed at her forehead, a stress headache already forming. “It’s going to be hard enough figuring out how to co-parent because of that, much more a relationship.”

But Maz waved dismissively. “Why don’t you just let the cards fall where they fall.” 

“You’re not.” Rey pointed out. “You’re scheming.”

“Because I know exactly where my cards are going to land. Now shoo! Go take a shower and get packing.”

Maz pushed Rey out of the living room and toward the stairs. Shaking her head, Rey climbed the stairs. When she reached her room, her phone went off with a text from unknown number; there was a picture attached. Having a good guess who it was from, Rey held her breath as she opened it. The contents brought on a fresh wave of tears. 

**_Bree took this and said I should send it to you for your contacts. Hope that’s okay._ **

The photo was a selfie of Ben and Bree. The smile on Bree’s face was blinding and Ben bore his usual, sort of self-conscious grin because he’d never liked the way his smile revealed his somewhat crooked teeth. 

Rey loved it. And texted Ben as much, adding they both looked great. His response came quickly after.

**_I think you need your eyes checked._ **

The light tone in the text gave Rey the courage to attempt a shot of humor herself. 

**You’re right. Our DAUGHTER looks amazing. You, on the other hand…**

Her heart pounded as she awaited his response, which came a few seconds later. 

**_Still as cruel as ever, Johnson._ **

The words echoed through Rey’s brain in Ben’s voice and she allowed herself to smile as she typed out her retort. 

**Honesty is the best policy, Solo.**

He sent an eye-roll emoji in reply and Rey’s smile turned into a grin. The brief exchange left her hopeful she and Ben would be able to move forward, despite her mistakes. It wouldn’t be in the way she had once allowed herself to dream about, but there was a chance for them. For their family. 

They really had a chance. 


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey arrives in Chandrila and meets Ben for the first time in fourteen years.

Ben had gotten Rey a ticket in first class. Which, while incredibly generous and thoughtful and made the five hour flight across the Republic the most comfortable trip Rey had ever taken, made her uneasy. The thought that she had taken advantage of him somehow kept crossing her mind. Maybe she should have been more insistent on paying for her own way. Next time, Rey promised herself, she wouldn’t let him pay for anything. 

However, she did indulge in the complimentary champagne and the deluxe meal, but only because Ben already paid for that. It wouldn’t do to waste money. When she saw him again, she would inform him gratefully, but firmly, she could manage any further trips on her own.

_When she saw him._ That little reality was still sinking in. She was going to see her high school boyfriend - the father of her child and maybe the love of her life - for the first time in fourteen years. 

It was enough to make her drink two glasses of champagne instead of the one she’d originally limited herself to.

When the plan landed, she wished she’d had more. 

As she walked through the terminal exit, wheeling two suitcases - one for her and one for Bree - she quizzed herself on how to greet him. Rey had spoken with Ben over the past day and a half through texting and once through email as they got Rey’s travel arrangements figured out, but that was different than an in-person conversation. 

Maybe this would work: 

‘Hey, you look good!’

No, too trite.

‘Wow, long time, no see!’

Even more cliched.

‘Remember that time you got me pregnant? What a trip that was!’

No. Just… no. 

“Mom! Mom, over here!”

All other thoughts left Rey’s head when she heard her daughter’s excited call. Rey’s eyes darted around when they found Bree, she dropped the suitcases and rushed forward to wrap her daughter in a tight hug. She buried her face in her daughter’s curls and closed her eyes. 

“Oh, my goodness,” she breathed. “You scared me to death. I’m dead and you’re hugging a ghost.”

“That’s weird, mom.”

“I don’t care.” Rey kissed the top of Bree’s head three times before she pulled back to grasp her shoulders and look her in the eye and take a sterner tone. “Don’t you ever, _ever_ do something like that again!”

Bree looked rightfully ashamed and nodded. “I promise. I won’t.” She brightened. “I won’t need to, though! Because now you’re both here!”

It was that moment a large, looming presence made itself known, blocking out the late afternoon sun shining through the airport’s glass roof. Rey’s heart stuttered in her chest as she straightened and turned to face it. 

There he was, in a blue henley, dark jeans, and converse of all things. He was taller than she remembered. But that made sense. He probably hadn’t stopped growing until he was eighteen or nineteen. The broad shoulders and thick chest were new. He’d not only gotten taller, but he’d grown in a way that was really unfair to the female sex. To every sex and gender.

In short, he looked damn amazing. 

Ben’s dark eyes tracked up and down Rey’s figure, like he might also be having similar thoughts about her and Rey felt even more self-conscious in her best pair of jeans and the green blouse Maz had suggested. When he finally stopped on her face, his shoulders stiffened and his heretofore carefully blank expression wavered.

Rey imagined he was struggling with the same question as she: did they hug? Shake hands? Kiss each other’s cheeks?

What was the protocol?

Neither of them spoke for Rey didn’t know how long. Long enough that Bree rolled her eyes and huffed out something about weirdo adults before she traipsed off to pick up the suitcases Rey had dropped. 

One of them had to say something. Rey thought it might as well be her. She went with something unoriginal, but acceptable. 

“Hey, Ben.”

His throat bobbed. “Hey, Rey.”

“You, um,” oh, gosh, she was really going with this, “you look good.”

Ben gestured at her. “So… so do you. Really good.”

“Not really good. I just spent five hours on a plane.” Rey blurted out a strangled laugh. Were her lungs working? She didn’t think they were working. “Which, um, we have to talk about, by the way.”

“Why?”

“You bought me a first class ticket.” 

“And?” Ben scowled. “So what?”

“So that must have been really expensive!” Rey exclaimed, already exasperated and it had only been two minutes. “And is that a Chanel sweatshirt on Bree?” 

Indeed, Bree was sporting a cream, long-sleeved sweatshirt with _Chanel_ emblazoned across the chest in black block letters. She was already back with the suitcases and standing off to the side, swiping through her phone.

Ben rolled his shoulders. “She needed some clothes in the interim so I took her shopping.”

“She doesn’t need those expensive things.”

An unhappy expression dulled his eyes and he crossed his arms over his chest, which Rey wished he hadn’t done because the move emphasized just how built he was, his biceps making an unnecessary appearance. “Maybe I wanted to spoil her a little bit since I haven’t been able to buy her a damn thing her entire life.”

The effect of his words was immediate. Rey pressed her lips together and dropped her gaze, shame coloring her cheeks. “You’re right,” she murmured. “I’m sorry.”

He sighed. “No, I shouldn’t have said that. At least, not like that.” When Rey raised her head he didn’t look as irritated, but more like a sad puppy, which was worse. “But I’m still mad at you.”

“Yeah,” Rey nodded. “Yeah. I know. I understand.”

She did. She fully understood that he was going to be pissed, possibly for a long time. But that meant he wanted to be in Bree’s life and that he would strive to be there for her. If that was true, then Rey would gladly take on his anger. 

“Are you two done arguing yet?” Bree interjected. Rey latched a frown on her. 

“We’re not arguing. We’re…um, having a discussion.”

If that wasn’t the most parent-ty thing she’d ever said, she’d eat her flats.

“Exactly.” Ben agreed. “A discussion.”

He was already deep into it, too, apparently.

“Okay,” Bree said slowly. “Then if you’re done having your ‘discussion’,” she used air quotes to emphasize the word, “can we go get something to eat? I’m starved.”

“She has your appetite.” Ben looked pointedly at Rey, who, grateful for the swift shift in atmosphere, snorted.

“I remember someone being able to eat an entire roast chicken by himself. In one sitting.” She shot back. 

A crooked smile broke out on his face and sent Rey’s insides into a tumble. “At least we know she comes by it honestly.”

“I can hear you.” Bree intoned. “Can we go now?”

“Is she this demanding with you?” Ben asked as he took hold of both of Rey’s suitcases. Rey shook her head. 

“No. I think you’ve already spoiled her.”

“No!” Ben stopped and looked at the ceiling in a dramatic fashion. “I’ve created a monster!” 

“I can HEAR you!”

Ben laughed and dropped the handle of one of the suitcases for a second to draw Bree into his side with an arm around her shoulders in a half hug. The sight twisted Rey’s gut and she was glad she was walking behind them. Neither of them noticed the way she wiped at her eyes. 

The emotions that consumed her weren’t negative; not completely. More bittersweet. She was glad Bree and Ben had formed such a quick bond but she couldn’t help the guilt - and supposed she shouldn’t help it - that Bree had missed having that connection her entire life. Rey’s own fears had stopped something wonderful before even giving it a chance. 

“Did you hear me, mom?”

Rey shook herself from her sad reverie and focused on her daughter. “What? Sorry, honey, I got… distracted.” She avoided Ben’s searching stare. 

“I was asking if pizza was okay. Dad knows the _best_ place. I had his leftovers when I got here and it was soooooo good!”

“Oh, um,” Rey nodded. “Yeah, sounds great.”

Dinner. With Ben. And Bree. In the same place. 

She might throw up. 

****

“Is this really your car?” Rey gawked at the sleek black Audi with a black and red leather interior. She didn’t know much about cars, but she knew this one had to be costly. 

Ben closed the trunk’s door on the suitcases before he said: “No, I stole it from a guy at the office. Of course it’s mine.”

Good to know his penchant for sarcasm hadn’t changed. 

“Dad’s rich.” Bree popped her head out from the backseat. “Like, super rich. His apartment is even nicer than the car.”

That made the Chanel sweatshirt and first class plane ticket make more sense. Yes, Rey knew his family had money, but Ben had always been reluctant to take any. He had said once to her he wanted to work for his success, not have it handed to him. Apparently he’d more than succeeded. He’d excelled. Now the entire situation had the possibility of being that much messier, because if he thought she wanted any of his money…

“I’m not _super_ rich. But I’ve been lucky.” He shrugged and opened the passenger door for Rey. “C’mon. She’s chomping at the bit for that pizza.”

“Ben…” He waited with an expectant expression. Rey lost her nerve and waved a hand. “Oh, never mind,” she said and slipped into the car, careful not to scratch the leather or otherwise affect the car with her presence any more than she had to. 

This was going to be a more stressful trip than she’d anticipated. 

****

Dinner was surprisingly pleasant, even though Ben insisted on paying. Rey did protest but she couldn’t do much with Bree there, and he knew it. However, the pizza was as delicious as promised and Rey did enjoy watching Ben and Bree interact. There was a way he had with her… Rey couldn’t put her finger on it but if she had to guess, it was because they were so similar in personality. Sometimes mercurial, withdrawn, but only because they felt _so much_. They cared, sometimes too deeply. 

Bree had found a kindred spirit in her father and for that, Rey was glad. She only hoped it wouldn’t end suddenly in disaster. 

After the meal, Ben drove them to his apartment. Rey could tell right away from the sleek, modern architecture of the skyscraper it was one of the most exclusive places in the city. Probably in the Republic. When they arrived at his spacious, two bedroom, two bath apartment with a huge kitchen, giant windows that overlooked the city, an open living area and the highest tech security system Rey had ever seen, she knew she was right. 

“Ben…” she followed him into the kitchen, where he deposited the leftover pizza in the fridge. Bree, apparently already at home, launched herself onto his ginormous couch and switched on the TV. Good. Rey didn’t want her to hear this. “Would it… um, would it be better if Bree and I moved to a hotel?”

“What?” he slammed the refrigerator door so hard that a few things on the inside fell and rolled around. Rey winced at the noise and glanced toward the living room. Bree hadn’t noticed; she was too busy flipping through Ben’s Netflix account. 

“Shhh,” Rey put a finger to her mouth. “Good heavens.”

“What do you mean should you move to a hotel?” he snapped, albeit quietly. “Why?”

The apartment. The car. The Chanel shirt. That she and Ben were seeing each other for the first time in fourteen years. That he was only just getting to know Bree. The whole thing. It was too much. Everything was moving so fast Rey was afraid she’d get whiplash.

“I…I just don’t want to have you think…” Rey pressed her lips together tightly and he narrowed his eyes, stepping a foot closer. He was very much in her space now and his heady cologne wafted into her nose. She was hard pressed not to take a deeper breath. It was different from the stuff he’d used as a teen; better. Warm and spiced and and masculine but still _him_. 

“Have me think what, Rey?” he whispered harshly, shaking her back to her senses. “Go on. Say it.” 

Rey froze. She couldn’t say it. Not yet. So she went with part of the truth. “I just don’t want to impose.”

The answer didn’t satisfy him. Not a bit. She could see it in the mildly disappointed drop to his mouth, but he retreated anyway. “It’s not an imposition,” he countered quietly. “I want you here. There’s plenty of room. As long as you and Bree don’t mind sharing a bed.”

“That’s not the problem…”

“Rey, you’re making this more difficult than it has to be. I want Bree here. And since you’re… you’re her mother, I want you here, too.” Ben worked his lips together, a quirk he’d always had, particularly when he was vulnerable.

It had always been Rey’s Achilles Heel. 

“Okay.” She said softly. 

Ben relaxed. “Good. Okay.” Having won the dispute, now he seemed at a loss. “Do you want anything to drink? I have, uh,” he looked in the fridge again, “beer, water. I got some milk yesterday for Bree.”

“Water is fine.” Rey replied. As he went about getting her a glass, she leaned against the counter, hugging herself loosely. “So, um, you’ve done really well. A lawyer, right?”

She didn’t have to ask and he knew it, but he answered anyway. 

“Yeah. Yeah. It seemed the natural course to take. Here.” He handed her a glass filled to the brim with water and watched awkwardly as she took a sip. “What are you doing nowadays?”

Rey tried to put the glass down without spilling any of its contents, but a little bit dribbled over the top. “I’m a teacher. Elementary art.”

A slight smile lifted a corner of his mouth. “Teaching kids art. That’s you all over, Johnson.” He grabbed a dish towel and wiped up the spilt water. “What a softie. Mrs. Archibald would be proud.”

“I just couldn’t help myself. All that clay got stuck under my nails and no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t get it out.” Rey returned his smile and managed to relax for the first time all day. “Oh, um, I brought something for you.” 

His brows went up. “You did?”

“Yeah, wait here, I’ll go get them.”

“Them?” he repeated as Rey left the kitchen and made for the suitcases left by the door. She put the one she wanted on the ground and dug through her clothes for her quarry. 

“What are you doing, mom?”

“Nothing. Keep watching your show.” The sound of a loud cry and swords clashing reached Rey’s ears. “Which is what, exactly?”

“….nothing.”

“I don’t think it’s nothing.” Rey stood up, the bundles she wanted safely in her arms, and traipsed into the living room. “ _Play of Scepters_? Breha!”

“Dad said it was okay!”

“Ben?” Rey pivoted to glare at the father of her child who was trying very hard not to be noticed from behind the kitchen counter despite his size. 

“She said you wouldn’t care.” He mumbled. Rey rolled her eyes and turned back to her daughter. 

“Well, I do care, and you, Bree, shouldn’t take advantage of people like that. Turn it off and put something less violent and adult on.”

“Fiiiiiiiine.” Bree turned off _Play of Scepters_ and switched it to some innocuous reality show. 

That dealt with, Rey returned to the kitchen and placed the gifts she’d brought on the counter. “She’s fourteen, Ben. Not nearly old enough for that show.”

“Lesson learned. To be honest, I’ve never watched it, so I didn’t know what it was like.” His ears had gone pink and Rey pressed her lips together to prevent herself from smiling. 

“It’s alright. She’s sneaky.”

“Downright devious. What are these?” He gestured at the three packages wrapped in tissue.

“Open them.” Rey encouraged and bit her lip as he obeyed. When the items inside were revealed, Ben paused, his breath leaving him in a rush. 

“Oh, wow.”

“Bree’s baby albums.” Rey pointed out the obvious. “Years one through three. I didn’t have enough room for the rest. But I’ll bring them next time, or send them with Bree…” She peered at Ben, trying to decipher what he was thinking, but couldn’t make out much from his profile. “I thought you might want to see them.”

Ben cleared his throat before he spoke, but even that wasn’t enough to hide how thick his voice had grown. “I do. Thank you.” He sniffed and opened the first one. The book flipped to a picture of Rey when she was at the hospital and in labor.

“Ugh, I forgot about that one.” She grimaced. “Oh, I look terrible…” 

Sweaty and downright miserable as she walked around trying to motivate Bree to come out. Rey had never forgiven Maz for taking the photo but had blissfully forgotten about it until now.

“Not terrible…”Rey saw a smile tug at Ben’s mouth. “But you do look like you want to cut someone.”

“You, actually.”

“Ah.” Ben coughed. “Right. Moving on. Oh…” He turned the page to see the first photo of Bree and Rey together after Bree had gotten cleaned up and brought back to her mother. Rey’s eyes were closed but her face was turned toward the baby sleeping on her bare shoulder. Ben went still as he stared at the photo. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off it. “I wish I’d been there,” he whispered and traced a finger over Bree’s peaceful expression.

Not for the first time and she suspected not for the last, guilt constricted Rey’s chest. “I know. I’m sorry.”

He shook his head and quickly turned to the next page. “You had your reasons. But I’d like to know what they were at some point.” He glanced her way. “I’m owed that much.”

“Yes,” Rey nodded. “You are.” She wondered if either of their feelings - her remorse and his anger - would ever fully dissipate. As if he could read her mind, Ben’s face softened. 

“Rey, I won’t be mad at you forever. I don’t want to be. I want…” he licked his lips and Rey could tell he was choosing his next words carefully. "I want us to be able to co-parent without a problem.”

“I want that, too.” She murmured, trying to shake off the disappointment of his distinction. It was unfair and ridiculous; they were adults now. Completely different people from when they last saw each other. There was no reason for her to entertain something more than a civil co-parenting relationship. Maybe they could be friends at some point but anything beyond that was impossible. “So, we’ll work on it.”

“Yeah,” he nodded. “We’ll work on it.”

****

Rey woke to a bed empty of her daughter and the smell of bacon and fresh coffee. Sleep had been nearly impossible, a nagging, taut knot in her stomach at the mind-bending reality she was in Ben Solo’s apartment. But she must have drifted off at some point, because she definitely would have remembered Bree getting up. The girl made more noise than a hungry dinosaur. 

Voices drifted down the hall from the kitchen and Rey forced her tired body to rise. She tapped at her phone to wake it up and groaned when she saw it was only eight in the morning. Barely five hours of sleep. Rey sensed a nap in her future. 

For now, however, she had to dress and face a new day of the unknown. The first full day of co-parenting with Ben. Whatever that meant; that conversation was not one she was excited about. There were a lot of lines to untangle, from her and Ben’s respective busy lives to how they would handle Bree’s education. 

After visiting the bathroom, dressing in a more casual t-shirt than she had on yesterday, and checking that her under-eye circles weren’t an absolute nightmare, Rey made her way to the kitchen. 

The sight when she arrived was not the one she expected, though she didn’t really know what she should have expected. 

Ben was standing at the stove, in a white collared shirt - the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, displaying his strong forearms - and business slacks, moving eggs around in a hot pan. Rey’s eyes trailed across the room to the dining table, where there was already a plate piled high with bacon and a pot of coffee that was begging to be consumed. Her daughter sitting at the table eating a stack of pancakes filled out the shockingly domestic scene. 

“Morming, mom!” Bree said, her mouth full of a fluffy pancake. The greeting alerted Ben, who spun around so fast he nearly knocked his eggs on the floor. 

“M-morning.” He cleared his throat and gestured at the spread with the spatula he’d been using to stir the eggs. “I made breakfast.”

Rey nodded and managed a small smile. “I see that. It looks… like a lot.”

Her former-boyfriend slash baby-daddy shrugged. “She was hungry.” Ben jerked a nod toward Bree, who was reaching for more bacon. “And I didn’t know what you would like. You’re not vegan or anything, are you? Because I don’t have…” he looked hopelessly about the kitchen. “I don’t have anything vegan.”

“I’m not.” Rey assured. “All of this looks great. Coffee first, though. Most important part of my day.” She nearly lunged for the pot sitting on the table and grabbed an empty mug that was beside it, waiting, she assumed, for her. 

“Something we have in common,” Ben remarked as he put the now plated eggs on the table. Rey sat but he didn’t join her, instead rolling down his sleeves. “I have to go to work,” he said when she threw him a questioning look. 

“Aw, what?” Bree exclaimed. “I thought we were all gonna hang out!”

“Bree.” Rey warned. “He has an important job.”

The disappointment on the girl’s face was heartbreaking. Ben noticed too and sat down in the chair beside Bree’s.

“It’s only for today.” He told her. “I’m going to take my sabbatical from the firm early so I can hang out with you and your mom. But I have some things to take care of first.”

Rey bit her lip to prevent herself from protesting; he was changing his plans already. She told herself that’s what he should do, that’s what he _needed_ to do, but all the same she couldn’t help the nagging guilt. 

“Really?” Bree was saying. “So you won’t have to work tomorrow?”

Ben shook his head and grinned. “Nope. We’ll plan something fun for the three of us. Is that alright?” he glanced at Rey who swallowed back her emotions - which coincidentally tasted a lot like her coffee - and nodded. 

“Yeah, of course.” She said, hoping he didn’t notice the squeak in her voice. 

“Great.” Ben stood up. “I’ll be back before five. You guys make yourself at home. I’ve left an extra key to the apartment by the door in case you want to go out.” He kissed Bree on the top of the head and moved around the table toward Rey as if he were going to do the same to her, but he stopped when she looked up and his face blanked. “I’ll see you later,” he mumbled and strode for the front door. 

A few seconds later it clicked shut behind him. 

Rey released the breath she hadn’t known she’d been holding.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben struggles with Rey's reappearance in his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are a lot of real life things going on right now that are getting in the way of writing, so i will most likely not get another chapter of this up until the week after next. There's more info on my writing tumblr - Zoa Writes - but I wanted to give y'all a heads up here, too. 
> 
> Thanks for reading and I truly, truly appreciate your support of this fic! Love y'all!❤️

_Surreal_ didn’t even begin to describe Ben’s morning. Sure, he’d adapted more quickly than he’d expected to Bree’s presence, but Rey… Rey walking in and saying ‘good morning’ and sitting at the table and drinking coffee…

And his instinctual urge - almost as if it were his years long habit - to kiss her goodbye… He had no idea where that had come from and was scared to think about it. 

Her presence was going to take some getting used to. Even if it was a temporary situation.

Was it temporary? How was his and Rey’s relationship going to work? Would she move to Chandrila? Would he have to fly back and forth from Chandrila to Takodana? Would Bree? He didn’t think that was fair. Someone would have to give something up. 

Ben didn’t think it should be him. He hadn’t asked to be out of the loop for fourteen years; Rey had forced that on him. She should be the one to make the sacrif-

A red light had him stomping on the brake to prevent his car from careening into an intersection. He’d been on angry auto pilot and hadn’t noticed how close he’d gotten. A few honks blared outside to let him know everyone else had. 

He took a deep breath and told himself to calm down. Being angry about it and getting into a wreck wasn’t going to help. Rey had her reasons and she promised to tell him what they were. He’d just have to be patient. 

Passing through the intersection, his thoughts moved to her arrival. A movie of memories had played in his mind when he saw her. Flashes of her smile - like summer sunshine - and her touch and her kiss had appeared like a kaleidoscope before his eyes. 

She was different, yes, but not different at all somehow. More beautiful, if that was possible. She’d grown up but was smaller than he remembered. Shorter, too. He’d gotten taller. 

But when she looked at him… oh, how he’d missed that gentle hazel gaze. He’d told her so many secrets under the influence of her eyes, wide and understanding as she listened. 

The green blouse had worked to brighten them as well as make her freckles pop. He remembered one time he tried to kiss each of the little marks but she had burst into giggles and he was turned upside down and inside out by the sound too much to continue. So instead they’d made out in the back of his dad’s truck. 

Those freckles were still there. And he still wanted to count them. 

But he couldn’t decide if that feeling was real or nostalgia. Besides, he had no evidence she might be open to anything beyond possible friendship. That's all he should want, too. And it was. 

_That’s all I want_. 

****

When he arrived at the grand monument to contemporary skyscraper architecture that housed his law firm, Ben took the long elevator ride to the firm’s floor and made straight for Snoke’s office. The first thing on his agenda was letting his boss know that he was taking his planned break from the firm early. There wasn’t much time before his campaign had to get rolling and Ben needed as many days as possible to figure out this strange new reality of having a daughter. With Rey. 

The office was busy, as usual. Ben didn’t think a single dull day had passed during his tenure there and he usually got tugged in or distracted by someone else’s case or Snoke needing him to jump into the courtroom and land a devastating blow. But not today. Today Ben could not get distracted.

“Hey, stranger!” Ginna popped up in front of Ben from her desk and nearly sent his already rapid pulse into overdrive. “How did things turn out with that kid?”

“Oh, yeah,” Ben grimaced. “I’m sorry, Ginna, I meant to call you…”

She waved a hand dismissively. “Don’t worry about it. You can make it up to me sometime. Is she alright?”

“Is who alright?” A British twang rang in Ben’s ear and he rolled his eyes as he glanced over to see the weasel-like Armitage Hux stroll up in his usual pin stripe suit, accented today with an expensive pink silk tie, the combination of which made Ben want to gag. “What perfect thing did you do now, Solo? Rescue a cat from a tree?”

“A puppy, actually.” Ben countered. Hux screwed up his nose in confusion. It was so easy to mess with him. “Yep, got thrown out a window. I’m representing the dog now as it’s suing the owners for mental and emotional trauma.” 

“Ben, that’s terrible.” Ginna shoved at his shoulder but Ben was unapologetic and grinned at the ginger menace, who glared back. 

“Solo’s _modus operandi_ is to be terrible.” Hux said sourly. 

“Oooh, Latin. That the latest phrase from your little daily calendar, Hux?” Ben crossed his arms over his chest with a smug smile. “So glad to see it’s working.”

Before Hux could retort - and from the reddened look on his face, Ben knew it was going to be a doozy - Doph Mitaka, a third-year law student and the firm’s latest intern, interrupted the little group with a stack of papers. 

“I’ve got the copy of those briefs you wanted, Mr. Hux.”

“The ones I ordered an hour ago?” he snapped back. Doph winced. 

“The printer…” 

“I don’t care! It’s your job to figure that shit out!”

“Anyway,” Ginna pulled Ben’s attention away from Hux. “What happened with that girl?”

“She, uh,” Ben darted a glance at Hux, who was still busy berating Mitaka, before he continued. “She wasn’t lying.” He figured it was safe enough to say that much. 

He was wrong.

Ginna covered her mouth with her hand, her blue eyes widening. “You have a daughter!” She exclaimed. Loudly. 

Instantly, movement in the office around them stopped as other busy paralegals, assistants, and Ben’s colleagues - including Hux - all gawked at the grimacing junior partner. 

Ben sighed. “Thanks, Ginna.”  


“I’m so sorry.”

“You’ve got a daughter, Solo?” Gwen Phasma drawled from her office doorway a few feet away. Also a junior partner, she was one of the best lawyers the firm had as well as one of the few people Ben considered a friend. “You’ve had sex?” she teased, her eyes bright. 

“Nope. I’ve never had sex and don’t have a daughter. Guess that settles that. Excuse me.” Ben pushed past Hux. “I have to speak with Snoke. Ginna,” he glanced meaningfully at the remorseful woman. “Don’t let them break you.”

As soon as Ben strode away the others descended on poor Ginna just as he thought they would, pummeling her with questions. Ben trusted she wouldn’t say anything; not that she knew much beyond the basic fact Bree was his child, but still. 

In the end, he supposed, it didn’t matter if the office knew. Everyone in the city - hell, in the whole damn country - was going to know soon enough. But Ben needed some time before that, so this talk with Snoke had to go well. His stomach tightened with anxiety as he approached the oak door to Snoke’s large office, the name emblazoned in bold gold lettering across the smooth surface. Pausing to take a deep breath, Ben lifted his fist and rapped on the door twice. 

“Come in.”

Snoke was sitting at his desk, imperious as ever in a grey suit as he glared at his computer screen. His pale eyes brightened when they fell on Ben and he pushed away from the computer. 

“Benjamin. Here to talk about the Smither’s case? Good. I thought we might…”

“Ah, no, sir.” Ben interrupted as politely as he could. He carefully closed the office door behind him and made his way to the giant mahogany desk. “It’s about my campaign. I need to take my break from the firm early.”

Snoke’s shrewd eyes narrowed. “We have a timeline, Benjamin. It’s important to adhere to it.” 

“I-I know, sir. But something has come up.” Ben hated that he was so anxious now. That he was always anxious in front of Snoke. He wasn’t sure if it was a fear of disappointing his mentor or being outright uncomfortable with him and the disparate possibilities only made the feeling worse. 

Snoke gestured to the two leatherback chairs situated on Ben’s side of the desk. “Tell me.”

Having no other choice, Ben sat and explained the situation in full. Snoke listened patiently, his hands templed beneath his long chin. 

“I assume you commissioned a paternity test?” he asked after Ben finished. 

“Yes. That was the first thing I did.” And he was ashamed of it, however prudent the decision might have been. “There’s no question. Bree’s mine.”

“Hm.” Snoke settled back in his chair and laid a discerning eye on Ben. “Are you certain this woman doesn’t want anything from you? You’ve just announced your senatorial campaign and you’re a successful lawyer. From what you’ve told me, I’m guessing she’s not in the best place financially.”

“No.” Ben shook his head. Snoke’s implication grated against what Ben knew about Rey, like fingernails on a chalkboard. “No. Rey’s not like that. She wouldn’t come fishing for money.” Besides, if that was what she wanted, Rey would have come to him sooner about Bree. He said as much to Snoke. 

“Perhaps it’s not a financial reason, then,” Snoke conceded, “but let me remind you, my boy, that everyone - _everyone -_ has an agenda.” 

“Not Rey.” Ben insisted. “She’s always putting others ahead of herself. I don’t know everything, but from what she has said I think she thought if she told me about Bree, she’d ruin my life somehow.” He curled and uncurled his fists repeatedly, his eyes on a dark whorl in Snoke’s desk. “She wouldn’t have ruined anything…” he said softly, his mind on an alternative reality. A very different, more full life than the one he’d lead. A life with Bree. With Rey…

“She very well could now.” 

Snoke’s harsh words pulled Ben from his daydream in an angry lurch. “What?”

“This child’s appearance puts you in an awkward position, dear boy.” Snoke explained, leaning forward. “The press will find out and, even though her existence is the result of youthful indiscretion, there will be those who will question your judgement because of it.” 

Ben’s chin trembled with rage and he clenched his jaw to prevent Snoke from noticing. The man didn’t abide weakness of any kind. “I’ll deal with it.”

“Hm.” Ben’s boss went quiet for a moment, his gray eyes narrowing in thought. “Who knows about the girl?”

Not sure how or why that mattered, Ben hesitated. “Um, my doctor, of course. Ginna…”

A wrinkled brow went up. “Ginna?”

“Yes. She and I were together when Bree showed up at my apartment.” His ears went hot in embarrassment. While dalliances between coworkers at the firm weren’t disallowed, Snoke discouraged Ben from engaging in them, calling them unnecessary distractions from his bright career. That didn’t necessarily stop Ben, but he tended to keep his relationships quiet.

Snoke’s disapproval was evident, but he didn’t comment on it, saying instead: “Can you count on her discretion?” 

The conversation was taking a strange turn and Ben wasn’t sure he liked the new direction. “I think so, but I’m not planning on keeping this a secret. I know I’ll have to deal with the press, but I don’t-”

Snoke held up his hands in a calming gesture. “I completely agree with you, Benjamin. Of course. But this is an unprecedented situation. I am only looking out for your best interests. I want to ensure you’re able to navigate these waters without unnecessary distractions like nosy reporters. In that regard, I have some connections in the press. If there is any hint of this news coming out prematurely, I will ensure it is quashed.”

Surprised from his defensiveness, Ben was speechless. Snoke had always shown an affinity for him, something Ben was grateful for because it had helped his career immensely, but to offer his protection for Ben and his new family was beyond anything Ben ever expected from him.

“Th-thank you, sir. That’s incredibly generous.” 

Something resembling a smile split Snoke’s face. “Of course. Take your sabbatical, Benjamin. But do keep me informed. Your well being is important to me and this firm.” 

Ben stood, relieved the meeting had gone so well. “Thank you, Mr. Snoke. I will.” Snoke got to his feet as well and rounded the desk to join his protege on the other side. He was taller than Ben, putting him in the unfamiliar and disquieting position of having to look up. A long, clammy hand clasped Ben’s shoulder and he had to stop himself from stepping out of Snoke’s hold. 

“You have a long, successful career ahead of you, dear boy. Everything you have strived for is within reach. Don’t let anything - or anyone - jeopardize that.”

****

Ben spent the rest of the day tying up loose ends, briefing the associates who were assigned to his cases, and calling clients to assure them they were in capable hands. Everyone - except Ginna, of course - was curious about the sudden change in Ben’s plans; he was supposed to be at the firm for another couple of weeks. Per Snoke’s advice, Ben didn’t volunteer any information. No one else needed to know anyway; it wasn’t their business. 

He did, however, exchange a few a words with Ginna before leaving, thanking her and promising to call her with an update. There was no real obligation to do so, but she’d been helpful and kind toward Bree; Ben figured he owed Ginna something for that. Probably a proper date. 

_What about Rey?_

The thought popped into his head as he was about to walk into his apartment and he stopped with his key just short of the keyhole. 

What about Rey?

Need he worry about her feelings?

Was there something there?

No. Rey was nothing. 

Well, not _nothing._ She had been something, once - she had been everything. Now she was just the mother of his child. 

_Just? That IS everything you fucking asshole._ Ben shook his head at his own insensitivity. _Try again._

She was the mother of his child, a woman he would need to have a good - at least cordial - relationship with for the rest of his life. 

The woman he had almost kissed that morning like they’d been married for ten years.

Ben hung his head and heaved a sigh. These were dangerous waters he’d come across; he needed to tread carefully or else he’d be swept away. 

When he entered the apartment, he wondered if that wouldn’t be a good thing. 

Rey and Bree were sitting around his coffee table, leaning over a game of Monopoly - a bowl of popcorn sitting apparently forgotten nearby - and arguing with each other. 

“I calculated the taxes right!” Rey insisted as Ben meandered into the living room. “Use your phone and check!”

“I’m the one taking AP math, mom. You didn’t do it right.” Bree crossed her arms over her chest, covering the graphic on the new band - some goth monstrosity called The Knights of Ren - t-shirt Ben had bought her. “You owe the bank fifty bucks.” She looked up as Ben approached and grinned. “Hey, dad!”

Ben’s heart took a tumble like it did every time she said the word and he grinned right back. “Hey,” he greeted. “Where’d you find the game?”

“The closet by your bedroom. There’s a bunch of board games in there. Do you want in?” She scoot over to make room for him on her side of the table and he obliged, settling down while she doled out some cash from the bank.

“By my… oh yeah,” Ben snorted. “I forgot I had those. Mom made me take them for some reason.” He heard Rey mutter something under her breath and glared at her. “What was that?”

She lifted her eyes and to reveal she was barely repressing a smile. “I was just wondering if… maybe… it might have something to do with the fact that you… cheat.”

“I do not!” Not always, anyway, but he wasn’t about to admit that. “When have I ever cheated?”

“Just every time we _ever_ played Monopoly. Or Scrabble. I haven’t quite figured out how you managed that one.”

He picked up the pewter race car and placed it on GO with a flourish. “Just you wait, Johnson. I’ll win this. _Without_ cheating. And you’ll have to eat your words.”

“Oh, I can’t wait.” Rey rolled her eyes but flashed a smile nonetheless that made Ben’s pulse race.

An hour later, he was the victor. 

“You definitely cheated!” Rey exclaimed, sending Bree into a fit of giggles. 

Ben only stacked his piles of cash in neat rows. “How did I do that when our daughter was the bank?” he queried innocently. He didn’t cheat this time. “You’ve always been a sore loser. We used to have fu-” Ben glanced at Bree and quickly corrected himself, “ _freaking_ Monopoly tournaments and you’d accuse me of cheating every time I won.”

“Because you won _all_ the time!” Rey insisted. “Like the last one we played. The night before…” her voice died and her face tightened.

It took a moment for Ben to register why. The last game they’d played together had been the night before she disappeared. The night Bree had been conceived. He didn’t know what to do or say and an awkward silence fell into the room. 

“What’s wrong?” Bree asked. “Mom, are you okay?”

The way Rey was able to change her expression from stricken to normal in a split second almost had Ben wondering if he’d imagined the way she’d paled. Almost.

“Fine, baby. You know what,” she stood. “Why don’t I go get some food started? It’s dinner time.” With that she hurried to the kitchen and Ben heard her open the fridge and rummage around, making quite the ruckus as she pulled things out and put them on the counter. She was hiding from them. From him.

“I’m going to help her.” He said, standing as well. “Can you put the game away, Bree?” The girl nodded and Ben made his way to the kitchen and the near-erratic mother of his child. “Rey?”

“Do you want pasta?” She asked, staring at a package of frozen lasagna. “No, we just had pizza…” Rey turned back to the fridge. 

“Rey.” Ben tried again yet still she ignored him. He saw how her hands shook as she pulled out a box of frozen salmon patties. 

“Fish is good. You like fish. Obviously.” She stared at the box in a kind of helpless way.

Ben reached out and took the salmon from her to place it on the counter; her empty hands fell limply to her sides. “What’s going on?” he asked gently. 

“Nothing.” Rey shook her head, avoiding his eyes. “Nothing’s going…” she stopped and put a hand over her mouth as a tearful burble escaped. “I’m sorry,” she sniffed. “I’m fine.” 

“You’re not.” It was instinct to reach out and hold her trembling shoulders in a reassuring grip. “I know this is about what you said in there. About the last time… the last time we saw each other.”

Rey buried her face in her hands. “I’m sorry.” She repeated in a whisper, then said in a rush of words Ben was barely able to track: “I’m sorry I had to leave. I’m sorry about Unkar. I’m sorry I didn’t try harder to contact you. I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you about Bree. I’m so, so sorry, Ben.” Her shoulders heaved as she tried to keep her sobs quiet, tried to get herself under control. Ben had seen her do it before. He remembered how she’d run to the bathroom at school after a bad night with Unkar and he’d follow her and find her exactly like this inside a stall. 

After a second of indecision, Ben pushed aside his resentment and his questions and pulled her into his arms in a tight, enveloping hug, the way he used to, the way that always seemed to comfort her. Rey went still as a statue but he kept his arms around her until she relaxed, her chest expanding into his as she took a deep breath and released it shakily. 

He’d forgotten how well she fit against him, how _right._ Like she was molded to him and he to her. Like they were meant for each other. 

A romantic notion he shouldn’t dare entertain. 

‘Shouldn’t’ being the operative word. The awareness of that fact didn’t stop it from planting firmly in the back of his mind. 

“It’s okay.” He whispered. “Like you said, we need to focus on what’s good for Bree. The past is in the past. Let it die. Everything’s different but we’ll figure it out. Rey, you’re not alone anymore.”

At that Rey lifted her head and Ben was relieved to see a smile - albeit sad and watery - on her face.

“Neither are you. By a lot.”

“Very true.” Ben agree with a slight grin of his own. His arms remained around her for a second too long before he dropped them; Rey took a step back, a move which tugged at his heart and he almost reached for her again. For another long second that might have been a minute, he and Rey stared at each other. He wondered if her heart was pounding as hard as his, or if she had the same tumultuous feelings roiling through her body. From the embarrassed (or maybe plain uncomfortable) look on her face, he bet not. He needed to diffuse the situation quickly. “So, uh, dinner…” Ben looked at the measly offerings of his freezer Rey had laid out on the counter. The extent of his food expertise ended at breakfast; and he only learned _that_ to impress dates. “…takeout?”

Rey breathed out a laugh as she wiped her face of tears. “Sure. Why not. But you’re gonna have to have a real meal every now and then when Bree’s over. Which means you need to learn how to cook something other than pancakes and bacon.”

“Yet another responsibility of parenthood I’ll have to throw myself into.” Ben shook his head. “Alas, my bachelor days are truly behind me.”

“So dramatic.”

Ben chuckled as he pulled out his phone and a takeout menu from the ubiquitous kitchen junk drawer, though his consisted mostly of said menus and a few brown rubber bands and wire ties that usually arrived with the rare purchase of sandwich bread. 

“Are you getting pizza again?” Bree popped up on the other side of the counter, a hungry gleam in her dark eyes. “Please?”

“Chinese.” Ben held up the menu. He frowned when Bree’s face fell. “You can’t live off of just pizza.”

Although, that had been his main diet in college. She truly was his daughter.

“Maybe you can’t…” she muttered. 

“Breha. Don’t sass your father.” Rey warned as she returned the items she’d pulled out to the fridge. “Chinese sounds great, Ben.”

_Don’t sass your father_. 

It took Ben a second before he recovered from the out-of-body experience of Rey saying that to Bree, in his kitchen, as if they were just any other normal - whatever normal means - family. His thoughts returned to that romantic, unrealistic idea he’d had, wondering if maybe it wasn’t so unrealistic. A little hope might have found its way in there, too. 

Later, after the distraction of dinner and a round of Scrabble, as he made his way to his bedroom, he automatically went back to that idea, though he tried hard to pull away from it. It didn’t make sense. He was still struggling with Rey’s decisions; how could he possibly be entertaining thoughts of wanting to be with her romantically? He would have said he was a masochist except he didn’t believe Rey had tried to hurt him on purpose. 

“Goodnight, Ben.”

Rey’s quiet, timid words drew him from himself and he repeated them back automatically. For a second she lingered in the hallway and he caught on to what she was wearing: pajama shorts covered in tacos and a tank stop which read “taco me later”. The sleepwear was quintessentially her and frankly adorable and Ben had to keep himself from grinning. He got the sense she had something to tell him and laughing at her wouldn’t help it come out. Her eyes roved his face, as if she was looking for the cue to do so, but maybe he hadn’t been successful in hiding his mirth, because she quickly averted her gaze and disappeared into his guest room. The door clicked shut behind her.

That expression was full of… well, _longing_. 

Did she have lingering feelings for him or was that look simply nostalgia? A ‘what-might-have-been’ regret? Ben couldn’t know. As much as he’d liked to, he couldn’t read her mind. 

What he did know was that _he_ still had a spark of old affection. He wouldn’t be struggling as he was if he didn’t. As he lay in bed, staring at the ceiling while sleep evaded him, he tried to convince himself that spark was just an echo of what had been. Even without the decade and a half long lie, he and Rey were so different now; adults with disparate lives and experiences. The likelihood that their teenage romance was anything - or could be anything - more was close to null. 

Still, Ben found himself open to the possibility. If she was, too… His brain went into overdrive thinking of the life he and Rey might still be able to share. A fantasy where she and Bree moved in permanently, where he and Rey might get married - if she wanted - and have - again, if she wanted - another child. Or two. 

He swallowed down a swell of emotion at the thought then dismissed it entirely. 

There was too much distance; too much baggage. He still hadn’t heard the full explanation as to why she had kept Bree from him. Yes, he knew he’d told Rey to let the past die and he should probably take his own advice but… 

But he had tried to find her. He’d gone so far he’d ended up in his own personal hell. Of course, she didn’t know that. Why would she, when she’d given up trying to contact him so easily even though she knew where _he_ lived?

Ben groaned in frustration and flipped onto his stomach. 

This back and forth argument with himself was going to drive him crazy. 

He told himself all the feelings were just memories mixing with reality. A shadow that would fade eventually. 

But, as he finally drifted off to sleep, his mind returned to how he’d felt as he held and comforted her earlier. There was a word that drifted across his dimming consciousness which he struggled to formulate and came to him just as his eyes closed. 

Complete. He’d felt complete. 


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A beach excursion gives Ben answers and introduces a possible major change in Rey and Bree's life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SORRY! 
> 
> Y'all have been so, so patient for this and I can't express how grateful I am! This fic is still going and I hope that the next update won't take as long to get up. To make up for the long interval between chapters, here's 6000 words of angst and family fluff! I'm really excited to bring it to you and to dive back into this story! 
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

A beach excursion was agreed upon for the new day and Bree was beside herself with excitement. But she didn’t have a bathing suit with her and neither did Rey, so Ben sent them off with his credit card. Rey was stubborn about that and he worked hard convincing her - the way she argued she should have been a lawyer - but eventually he wore her down. He drove them to the mall but decided it was best to wait for them; shopping for women’s things wasn’t his forte and he was pretty sure neither one of them really wanted his opinion anyway. So he settled himself down at the food court with a bag of fries and a coffee and waited for his family to return.

His _family_. The whole concept was still surreal. He had a daughter and Rey was her mother. They were entwined together forever now, whether either of them liked it or not. He didn’t _not_ like it. It was weird, but nice. For the nth time his mind returned to the possibility that had kept him up most of the night: could there be anything romantic between he and Rey?

Just as his brain - and maybe another less logical part of himself - decided that, given certain circumstances, there could be, his phone went off with Snoke’s number.

Ben scowled at the device; the last thing he wanted to do was talk to his boss but not talking to him was out of the question. With a heavy sigh Ben swiped to answer the call.

“Mr. Snoke. Is everything alright?”

_“Of course, dear boy, of course. I realize this call must be unexpected, but something concerning your new situation came to my mind.”_

“Something concerning… you mean Rey and Bree?” Ben’s scowl deepened and a kid walking with his mother began to cry as they passed. Rude. “What would that be, Mr. Snoke?”

_“Have you and Miss Niima discussed custody and child support arrangements?”_

Taken aback, Ben was silent for a good thirty seconds.

_“Benjamin? Are you still there?”_

“Uh, yeah, sorry, sir. I just… um, no, we haven’t.”

In all honesty, he hadn’t thought about it. The issue would probably have come up on its own during his and Rey’s eventual discussions about co-parenting, but Ben didn’t think now was the time. Rey and Bree had literally just popped into his life. The legal details could wait… couldn’t they?

_“I thought as much. I would suggest deciding upon a plan and signing the documents as quickly as possible. There are certain… risks in waiting.”_

With a sickening feeling in his gut, Ben asked: “What risks?”

Snoke’s tone lowered to what should have been a comforting level but for Ben only made him feel more nauseous. _“I know you believe this woman won’t attempt anything untoward, but I would prefer you take precautions. Without a contract, she might be able to sue for more than she has a right.”_

Ben wanted to yell into the phone that Rey should have _everything_ , all that he had. That she deserved it and more. He wanted to toss the damn phone and Snoke along with it into a nearby fountain but he took a deep, deep breath to calm himself. His boss was looking out for him, he told himself. Snoke didn’t know Rey. If he did, he’d understand.

All the same, while he stopped himself from destroying his phone, he didn’t stop being irritated. 

“I appreciate your concern, sir. I’m sure we’ll get something figured out soon. When we do, you’ll be the first to know.” His response was a bit short even to his own ears and he knew Snoke could tell.

_“Very well.”_ The other man said and Ben winced. Oh yes, Snoke was miffed. That didn’t bode well. _“It is my professional opinion you should not delay. Have a good day, Benjamin.”_

A heavy breath followed Ben setting his phone down on the table. What was that? He couldn’t shake the sense there was something odd about Snoke’s interest in Ben’s personal life. Maybe he was being paranoid. There’d been a lot happening lately.

“Dad!” Bree appeared with a couple of bags in her arms and collapsed on the table bench opposite his. Her eyes lit up at the sight of the fries and immediately stuck her hand in the bag, the sack crackling loudly in protest. “Oh Em Gee. I’m starved!”

Ben huffed in amusement but his eyes lifted as Rey approached. She was holding a smaller bag of her own from what Ben knew was a cheaper store. He wondered if she’d even used his card.

Something told him the answer was no.

“Did you find something nice?” He asked Bree, though his eyes trailed Rey as she sat beside their daughter. When she met his gaze a frown appeared between her brows. Maybe his expression bore signs of his conversation with Snoke. Ben’s jaw tightened and a split-second later Rey’s frown deepened. Fuck. She could still read him like a book.

“…it’s so cute! Orange and white stripes, kinda like a Dreamsicle. Do you like Dreamsicles?”

“What?” His attention whipped back to Bree, who’d been babbling on and on about her new clothes. Ben only caught the end of her monologue. “What was that again?”

“Do you like Dreamsicles?” Bree repeated cheerfully. “I love them. Anything orange and vanilla!”

“Oh.” Ben nodded, trying to remember if he’d ever had one of the sweet treats. “Yeah, I think so.”

“Maybe I inherited that from you. Mom doesn’t like them. Do you, mom?”

“You know what, it’s been so long since I’ve had one I don’t remember. I think that place over there sells them,” Rey pointed to an ice cream kiosk nearby. “Why don’t you go get a couple?”

“Can I get some more fries, too?”

Had she eaten what was there already? Ben glanced in the bag. Sure enough, there were only a couple wrinkly bits of fried potato left.

“Sure,” Rey answered and Bree was off. To Ben’s dismay, as soon as their daughter was out of earshot, Rey confronted him. “Are you okay?”

Shit.

“I’m fine.” He tried to sound normal but didn’t even convince himself. “It’s nothing. Just a work thing.”

Sure enough, she didn’t believe him; doubt was written all over her face in a little frown he knew well.

“Would you rather not go to the beach today, then?”

“No,” he said quickly. There was absolutely no way he was going to let Snoke’s ugly conversation ruin something Ben had promised Bree or make Rey feel guilty somehow. “We should go. Work can be dealt with later.”

When he had a chance to think on how to properly broach the subject with Rey.

“Are you sure?”

Her face was tight and nervous and he realized Rey was looking at this moment as a sign of how much he meant what he said, that Bree’s presence wasn’t a burden. Fair or not, he needed to give her that reassurance.

Ben leaned forward, making his expression as earnest and open as he could. “I’m sure.”

To his relief, Rey’s expression relaxed.

Just a tiny moment of insecurity had done that, had made Rey question him. Ben didn’t know what would happen when they had the harder conversations.

This was going to be more difficult than he thought.

* * *

Scarif Beach was a place Rey knew well. The strip of sand was a favorite haunt of her and Ben’s in days gone by; she recalled long summer nights spent there beside a fire, spilling everything built up inside her, giving him more than she’d ever given anyone. Wanting to give him even more.

Sometimes she still had that urge. The night before she’d given in to some of it, blurting out thoughts that had festered inside her since her arrival in Chandrila, boiling over in light of how wonderful their game with Bree was, the glimpse of the family they could have been.

And he’d comforted her. Despite what she’d done.

Oh, it had felt so good, so _right_. Rey had never dreamed she’d enjoy being in his arms again. Well, she’d dreamed, but never thought it would be reality.

Probably wouldn’t be again. Too much had changed between them.

Unlike the beach, which maybe carried a few more food and drink kiosks than she remembered, but otherwise it was very much the same.

She didn’t know how to talk to him. That moment at the mall had been terrifying. The first real moment where Rey and Bree’s presence was stressing him, causing a disruption. A moment where she wasn’t really sure if _he_ was sure. A look passed between them as they set up their spot on the beach, laying out a huge blanket on the sand, and Rey knew today was the day he was going to get his answers. He needed them. He deserved them. She hoped that getting them would help him be more assured of Bree being in his life.

She hoped.

********

“So, can we talk now?” Rey looked over to see Ben was watching her, wary and frowning. “About why…” he added, just to make sure she knew what he meant.

Rey took in a deep breath and let it out slowly before nodding. “Yes.”

“Then _why_?” Ben insisted. “Why hide her from me?”

She couldn’t meet his eyes, wide and imploring and sad. “I wasn’t trying to hide her.”

“What were you doing?”

“Protecting her. You. All of us.”

“Protecting…? Did you think you were going to ruin my life or something?”

Silence.

“Rey…”

  
“Your family…” Rey closed her eyes. “Your family was - is - well respected.” She opened them again and this time did meet his gaze. “What would it have done to your future when it came out you knocked up your teenage girlfriend? A nobody? No family of her own, a creepy guardian… Unkar would have been tied to your family, maybe forever.”

“I wouldn’t have cared.” Sharp, indignant. Maybe a little disappointed she thought he would.

“But you _should,_ ” Rey insisted, horrified. “Ben, you wouldn’t be where you are today if I’d told you.”

His face clouded. “Where I am today,” he repeated, eyes drifting toward where Bree was being taught to balance on a surf board. “So that’s it. You really thought you’d ruin my life.”

“Not just that…” Rey picked at the blanket beneath them, wishing it was only that. “People would have thought I was after your family’s money, Ben. The people at school did while we were together and if they did their parents did. They would probably think I got pregnant on purpose.” When she looked up again he was the one who was horrified. “And I was afraid,” she whispered, throat thick, fighting back tears as she confessed. “Afraid that… that you would start thinking it, too.”

A silence fell heavier than her words.

“You didn’t trust me. You should have trusted me.”

Ben didn’t snap. He didn’t yell. He didn’t raise his voice even a little. He sounded _sad_. Which was ten times worse. Rey’s chest tightened unbearably and she wrapped her arms around herself, wishing he would hold her instead but knowing full well that was impossible. Especially now.

It took her a moment before she found the ability to speak again.

“I know. All I can say is I’m sorry and… and I hope what I did doesn’t affect you and Bree. If you want me to stay away I will, but she wants to know you. She adores you, Ben,” Rey searched his face, which was again turned away from her. “Don’t let what I did hurt her.”

The heaviest sigh Rey thought she’d ever heard exited his chest.

“You still don’t trust me.” He faced her. Disappointed, hurt. Grief deep in the dark expanse of his eyes. Caused by Rey. Something with which she would have to reconcile one day. “Start trusting me now,” he continued. "I’m not going to send her away. I’m not going to send you away. I meant it when I said I want to co-parent. I want… I want to be friends again.”

_Friends_. Well, if that was all, Rey would be content. She had to be.

“Alright,” she whispered. “I trust you.”

She did. She would.

Ben looked at her for a long time, gauging, she thought, her honesty. He must have been satisfied because he nodded.

“Okay. Then we’ll start over. Agreed?”

Was it that easy? Could he really just move on like that? Maybe not. Maybe they would fight about it again, but now Rey would try to keep her promise and trust him.

“Agreed.”

As if a weight had dropped from his shoulders, Ben relaxed, resting back on his hands and returning his attention to Bree’s attempts at surfing. A few big splashes later, he broke the silence again and Rey’s heart shattered for what had to have been the millionth time since Bree left home.

“I broke into your house. The one you and Unkar were living in. Neighbors called on me and that was Mom’s last straw."

Rey didn’t know what to say, so she stayed silent, too wracked with more guilt to even open her mouth. He didn’t seem to expect a response anyway, because he continued.

“I tried to find you. After I was sent to Uncle Luke’s school. I spent my month’s allowance every month calling and paying private detectives. In college, too.” Ben sat up straight, pulling his knees up and resting his arms on them. His black swimming shorts somehow had sand on them. It got everywhere. “I’m not saying this to make you feel worse. I don’t want you to feel bad anymore. But I thought it was important you know that I did try to find you.”

Oh.

“Thank you,” she whispered, unable to do anymore than that for fear she’d break down. She’d always wondered if he’d looked for her. Now she knew. And she knew what it cost him. Before more of those thoughts could pull her down in a never ending spiral, a large hand landed on her knee. Rey’s eyes flew up and met Ben’s earnest gaze.

“I don’t expect it to be easy for you, but please stop punishing yourself. I…” his tongue swept over his lips, “I need you to help me be a good dad. I don’t exactly have the best role model in that area…”

Now Rey could see it. Something she would have seen before if she hadn’t been so focused on her guilt. He was scared. Terrified. Of course he was.

“Ben,” Rey took his hand in hers and scoot closer, “you’re already a good dad. You know how I know?”

He shook his head, eyes locked on hers, wide and worried.

“Because you fight for her,” she smiled. “And the way you want to spend every second you can with her. That’s all she needs, Ben,” Rey lifted her free hand to his cheek, “for you to fight for her and be there. You’ll make mistakes but just keep those two things in mind and you’ll be great.”

It felt like how it had been, comforting him, encouraging him after a bad day. She remembered some nights he threw a rock at her window and begged her to come down. Of course she did. He was upset, usually because of an argument with his dad. So she would listen. That’s all he needed, was for someone to listen.

Maybe that’s what he was thinking, too, when his expression softened and he leaned a little into her hand. Rey was caught by his eyes, by how… how _longingly_ he looked at her. As if he still missed her, even though she was right next to him.

“Mom! Dad!”

Bree came bounding up and Rey darted away from Ben. She didn’t need Bree thinking something was going on between her parents. Because there wasn’t. She didn’t look at Ben but could feel his eyes still on her.

“Josh said I can try a bigger wave now! You have to watch!” Bree only made it halfway to their spot in the sand before sprinting back to the waterline where her instructor was waiting.

“I don’t know how I’m going to keep up with her,” Ben remarked with a shake of his head.

“It’s not easy,” Rey grinned. “But it’s worth it.”

“Tell me.” She turned but Ben was watching Bree as he spoke. “Tell me everything about her.”

****

While Bree continued her surfing lessons, Rey told Ben everything she could about Bree’s infancy and childhood, everything about her developing personality and how smart she was to the smallest habits and quirks.

“She’s so much like you, Ben. I see you in her everyday. Little things, like the way she ties her shoes. I taught her one way but the next thing I knew she was doing it just like you.” Rey laughed. “I asked her if anyone had shown her how to do it like that, but she said no. She came up with it all on her own.”

“I noticed,” he said quietly. “I hoped it was because of me somehow.” Ben scrutinized her for moment, not in an intimidating way, but like he was discerning something. “What about you? How did you do it? Raise her on your own?”

Rey looked away, absently picking at a piece of lint on the blanket. He didn’t sound bitter now but any acknowledgement that he’d been absent from Bree’s life still stung. “I wasn’t entirely on my own,” she finally said. “Maz, my adopted mom, helped me. I don’t know what I would have done without her. She’s a grandmother to Bree.”

“I’m glad,” he murmured. “I’m glad you weren’t alone. What about…” he cleared his throat and Rey glanced over. A hint of pink touched his cheeks and she frowned.

“What?”

“Uh, it’s none of my business.” He waved a hand dismissively. “I don’t need to know…”

“Know what, Ben?” What in the world could he be so embarrassed about? “Is it about Bree?”

“No. Well, tangentially.”

“Tangentially? Ben, c’mon, just ask me.” The dancing around was grating on her already frayed nerves.

“Fine, fine.” The color on his cheeks darkened and spread to his ears and he avoided her gaze. “Are you, uh, are you seeing anyone?”

Oh. That wasn’t at all what she expected. 

Rey flushed, and, flustered, replied, “um, no. I haven’t been with anyone since you.” His eyes widened and Rey realized what she’d confessed. What she had definitely _not_ meant to say. “I mean, seriously! Like, a serious relationship. I’ve dated. Just not… not…”

“Seriously?” Ben supplied mildly and Rey managed an embarrassed smile. “Why not?” he asked. “If you don’t mind saying…” There was an eagerness to the question, as if there was something particular he wanted to know but couldn’t - or wouldn’t - voice.

What must he think? That she was so heartbroken and in love with him she couldn’t date anyone else? Well, that was partly true. But not the whole truth.

“I was a single mom,” she explained. “Usually once my dates found out I had a kid, they weren’t too inclined to call back. Don’t feel sorry for me,” she reached out and touched Ben’s arm when his expression darkened. “Part of it is on me. I wasn’t much interested in relationships after Bree was born. She was - she is - my world. I was too busy raising her and going to school. Romantic relationships sort of naturally got put on the back burner.”

Ben nodded and for a few seconds there was an awkward pause before Rey pulled up the courage to reciprocate the question.

“What about you?” Was there a squeak in her voice? She cleared her throat. “Are you seeing anyone?”

“No. Yes.” He frowned, annoyed, it seemed, with himself. “Someone from work… we haven’t actually gone out. I asked, but…” he trailed off, eyes skirting to Bree, who was catching on to surfing quickly, having already traversed a couple of waves successfully.

Despite how unfair it was, Rey couldn’t help the pang in her heart. The twist of the knife with which time had stabbed her. Of course he’d moved on. Why shouldn’t he? She had made it so easy for him.

“Do you like her?” Rey didn’t know why she was asking when she didn’t want to know.

“I don’t know.”

How cruel that hope curled its way back into her chest like vines searching for the sun. “Is she nice?”

“Yeah, very nice.” He glanced at Rey. “It’s not serious. It’s not anything.”

“Oh. Well, if you want it to be, that’s fine.” _But if you don’t, that’s better_.

A scowl appeared between his brows. “I know it’s fine.”

His sharp tone came as a surprise and Rey glared right back at him. “I know. You can do what you want.”

That tell of his, the eye twitch, gave away he was more than irritated. But Rey didn’t care. She was over the conversation about their respective love lives. None of it mattered, anyway. She straightened up, brushing the sand on her hands away and with it the discussion. They had more important things to consider, anyway.

“We should talk about how this is going to work. Co-parenting. When she stays with who.”

Ben instantly tensed, a somewhat uncomfortable expression passing over his face, before he said, “Whatever arrangement means I get to spend as much time with her as possible. That’s all I want.”

Rey eyed him. “You know that time can’t all be sunshine and roses, right? You’ll have to discipline her. And sometimes you’ll have to push her into doing homework. She’s really good about it herself because she knows what I expect from her, but-”

“Now it’s what _we_ expect from her,” he interrupted, a snippet of resentment back in his voice. Rey stiffened. “I know she’ll need discipline. I didn’t get to being a junior partner by fucking around.”

“Right,” Rey pressed her lips together; she needed to tread carefully. “So, should we do every six weeks then? Six weeks here, six weeks in Takodana? Maybe that at first and then she can do every other week?”

“You want her to travel across the country every other week?” Ben was frowning, not as deep as a scowl, but getting there. “No. Why don’t you just both move here?”

“Ben!” Rey gaped at him. “I can’t uproot just like that. I have a job and Bree has friends, she loves her school, there’s Maz… we have a life in Takodana.”

“And I want her to have a life _here_. Where I live. Where my parents live. Her grandparents, who, by the way, still don’t know she exists because I wanted this,” he gestured between them, “figured out first.”

“It’s not fair to ask me and Maz and Bree to move to Chandrila. Would you drop everything right now? Your career? The Senate?” He would win the race, she knew that much, but lose any flexibility he had left in his career.

“No, but it’s a bit harder to switch locations as a senator,” he stated flatly, unknowingly confirming Rey’s assumption.

“My job - where I work in _Takodana_ \- is important to me, Ben,” Rey retorted defensively. “Just as important as yours.”

He looked away and it was quiet for awhile but Rey knew from the way he curled and uncurled his fingers and worked his jaw that the discussion wasn’t done.

“You’re being selfish,” he snapped finally.

“Selfish?” Rey exclaimed, then lowered her voice just in case Bree heard somehow. “How am I being selfish?”

Ben leaned in, catching Rey’s cue, but his hissed words ripped just as deeply as if he’d shouted. “If you were thinking about Bree and not yourself you would know moving here would be best for her. She could go to the best school, receive the best chances, be given everything she could possibly want including an actual family that doesn’t live in the armpit of the Republic.”

Torn between hurt and fury, Rey’s chest heaved and hot tears pricked at her eyes. “An _actual_ family?” Ben’s eyes closed and he released a deep sigh.

“I didn’t mean…”

“I know what you meant,” she snapped. “You think that because we live in a place that’s not as fancy as your stupid apartment that I didn’t try to give Bree the best life I could? Because I did, Ben. I scavenged and saved and did _everything_ to give her a chance.” He swallowed and opened his mouth but Rey wasn’t done. “I don’t need some self-righteous, rich prick telling me I’m not enough for my daughter. That I didn’t do enough. And if the price of her not going to a fancy school is that she doesn’t think shit like that then I will happily pay it!”

She jumped up and would have stormed off - just to cool down - but Ben stood at the same time and grasped her shoulders from behind. “Rey, stop. I’m sorry.”

Rey shook off his hands and he took a step back. She wiped her cheek of the tears that had fallen before glaring at him. “You’re not better than me, Solo.”

“I know,” he said quietly. “I know that. I’m sorry. But Rey,” he wet his lips, swallowed, “you have to see I’m making sense. Being in Chandrila would be best for her. For both of you.”

Was it? Rey didn’t see it. Or wouldn’t. Was she being stubborn? In all honesty, it was frightening to think about moving back Chandrila, starting over again. She felt off-kilter, as if the earth was uneven and she couldn’t see where it straightened out. Out there in the ocean, Bree was laughing and smiling as she took to the waves like she’d been born for it. There wasn’t a beach in Takodana, not like this. Just a lake the city authorities didn’t recommend swimming in. Maybe it would be easier for Bree to adjust than Rey thought. Or maybe it would be a disaster like she feared. Would Ben really be there to help? With his career taking off and new responsibilities flying at him from every direction? Could he keep his promise to be present? Or would she and Bree move to Chandrila just to have him come around only once a month, maybe less?

“I don’t know, Ben…”

“What happened to starting over? To trusting me?” He caught her eyes, held her with them as only he could. “I _know_ this is right.”

Rey broke the contact by lifting her face to sky, needing the bright, saturated blue to clear her mind. She heaved a sigh. Compromises were going to have to be made by the both of them. Maybe he was right. She brought her gaze back down and considered him. What would it be like to be in the same city with him again? See him possibly every day? Would those old feelings resurfacing in her rise in him, too? Another sprig of hope unfurled as she thought about a life where she and Ben were together, with Bree, maybe more kids…

_He’s seeing someone. He’s moved on._

Right. No fairy tale ending. This was reality. The sprig died.

The most important thing was Bree. Would moving make her happy?

“I have to ask Bree about it,” Rey said finally. “Then we can talk again.”

He didn’t seem entirely pleased but nodded. “Okay. As long as we figure it out soon. I don’t want my campaign to get in the way of making arrangements.”

His campaign. Looming over them like a dark cloud.

Rey sighed. “Of course. We’ll talk about it before then.”

“Talk about what?” Bree piped up, breathlessly arriving at their beach picnic site, looking like Poseidon with a spare bit of seaweed draped over her shoulder. “I hope it’s about food cuz I’m starving!”

The stressful and tense moment the child walked into dissipated almost instantly in her presence. Ben released a soft laugh and tugged Bree into a one-armed hug.

“I’m on it,” he said. “How about some hot dogs?”

“Yes!” Bree grinned up at him. “With everything!”

“Everything?” Ben’s eyes widened with dramatized shock. “Wow. Even the sriracha?”

“Yes!”

“Alright,” he sighed and grabbed his wallet from the beach bag Rey had bought at the mall for their group’s small items. “It was nice knowing ya.”

Bree rolled her eyes but was grinning ear to ear at her father’s teasing. The doubts roiling in Rey’s mind like a stormy sea gave way to a burst of sunlight. Their daughter was happy, happier than Rey had seen her in some time and again Ben displayed how good he was with her. Maybe returning to Chandrila would work out.

When Ben disappeared up the beach to get the food, Rey sat down beside where Bree had flopped to dry off. She had wrapped herself in a purple beach towel and was currently tapping excitedly away on her phone. Rey thought she could broach the subject of moving with her now, while Ben was gone and not an eager distraction.

“Bree, honey, can we talk for a minute?”

“One sec, Mom, I’m telling Maz what we’re doing today.”

Wincing, Rey said, “tell her I say hi and I’m sorry for not calling.” She was supposed to leave an update this morning and completely forgot.

“I already did.” Bree gave her mother a knowing look. “And she says hi back.”

“What would I do without you?” Rey asked with a fond smile and leaned over to kiss the top of Bree’s head, though she had to stretch a bit because Bree was already taller than her. Her curls were damp and salty from the ocean but still wild. Rey didn’t think they would ever be tamed. “I’d be lost.”

“I know.” Bree grinned then dropped her phone on the giant, red and black picnic blanket and turned to Rey. “So what’s up?”

Rey adjusted, shifting closer to Bree for a bit more privacy. “How are you feeling?” she asked slowly, deciding to ease into the big question. “About all of this with your dad? I know it’s a lot…”

For a moment it was like Ben was staring back at her, his eyes in Bree’s face, solemn, but honest. “I’m happy, mom. Everything’s better than I ever dreamed.”

Rey managed a melancholy smile but tears were already drifting down her cheeks, overwhelmed by a surge of regret. “I’m glad,” she whispered. “And I’m sorry, sweetheart, for not telling you about your dad… for… for everything.”

To Rey’s surprise Bree lunged forward and wrapped her in a tight hug but Rey didn’t hesitate to return it, clutching her daughter to her like she was still five.

“I already forgave you, Mom,” Bree said, young voice thick with emotion. “I know you did your best.” Though loathe to give up the hug - which were getting rarer nowadays - Rey retreated a bit so she could look Bree in the eye.

“I’m always trying to do my best for you. I’ve made mistakes and heaven knows I’ll make more, but I will always, _always_ try my hardest for you.”

A few tears crept down Bree’s pale cheeks and Rey wiped them away. “Okay, okay, enough mushy stuff,” Bree sniffed and sat back. “Was that what you wanted to talk about?”

“Yes, but there’s something else.” Rey took a breath. “Your dad and I are trying to figure out the best arrangement to co-parent. Obviously we both want as much time with you as we can get…”

Bree’s shoulders dropped. “So you’re not getting back together?”

“No,” Rey said gently but firmly. It would do no good for Bree to entertain that thought, even though Rey hated to see the disappointed expression on her daughter’s face. “We’re too different now, baby. It wouldn’t work.”

“Okay,” Bree said in a small voice. “So, shared custody, right?”

Rey swallowed. This was not an easy conversation. “Yeah.”

“Does that mean I’ll have to fly between Takodana and here?” It was very apparent by the way the girl’s face scrunched up the concept was not appealing. One mark for moving, Rey thought wryly.

“Yes, it does.”

“What about Dad moving to Takodana?”

“He’s not in a position to move because of his work,” Rey admitted reluctantly.

“Oh, right.” Bree nodded, her quickly drying - and frizzing - curls bouncing a bit around her face. “Yeah, I don’t want him to have to move. He’s really excited to be a senator.”

Rey looked at her daughter with worried tenderness. Bree was so ready to make compromises for Ben because she already loved him. Yet with that thought came the ugly doubt that he would be willing to do the same. Rey quickly mentally shook it away and broached the final option.

“There is the possibility of moving here…”

At once Bree’s entire body trembled with excitement. She was practically vibrating. “Here? Really? We’re moving here? To the beach?”

“Not exactly the beach and hang on a second!” Rey huffed and frowned. “I didn’t say we’re _definitely_ moving. I said it’s a _possibility_.”

Bree was not one to be dissuaded. “I want to.”

“Honey, what about school? Your friends? Maz?” Rey didn’t think Bree was truly thinking of the magnitude of such a venture. “We have a life in Takodana. A good one.”

“Yeah, I know,” Bree acknowledged quietly. “And I’d miss it. I’d miss everyone, but Mom,” she leaned forward, eyes wide and earnest, “Dad’s here. We could be here, too. Then I wouldn’t have to fly all the time. I could be with the _both_ of you all the time. You wouldn’t have to worry about me traveling by myself…”

She had a point there.

“And I’d love to go to the same school you and Dad went to. I could surf! And Maz could move out, too!” Bree grinned and Rey could see from the dreamy look in her eyes Bree had the future all planned out. Rey wished she could see it.

“You really wouldn’t mind if - _if_ \- we moved to Chandrila?”

A wild shake of dark curls was Bree’s answer along with a decisive: “Nope!”

“Alright. I’ll think about it.” Bree’s expression turned down but Rey was adamant. “I’m still not convinced it’s right for us. But I’ll talk about it with your dad.”

“Okay.” Bree sighed. “Where is he anyway? I’m so hungry I could eat a whale!”

Right on cue, Ben appeared from behind a neighboring umbrella, arms full of more food than Rey thought they needed.

“Help?” He called and Rey and Bree looked at each other before they jumped up, laughing, to assist him.

****

After a very full meal, the three sat back to enjoy the sun setting on the water. Bree sat between her parents and even though Rey didn’t know what the future held, she was very glad for this moment.

“Selfie! I want a selfie!” The moment of calm was interrupted by Bree scrambling for her phone, which she’d put in the beach bag while eating. She returned to her position and held out her arm, gesturing with some annoyance at her parents. “C’mon! Scootch in, Mom!”

Rey got as close as possible, cheek to cheek with Bree, but she still wasn’t fully in frame. “Your arm isn’t long enough!” She laughed.

“Dad, you hold it.”

“How do you selfie?”

“Do you really not know?” Bree exclaimed, shooting him a confused look.

“We didn’t have phones when I was young.”

“Ben, don’t tease.”

He grinned, wide and boyish and Rey’s heart somersaulted. Damn it, was she blushing?

“Sorry,” he capitulated. “Alright, lemme see…” His arm was definitely long enough and finally everyone was in frame. “3, 2, 1, Chewbacca!”

****

Later, in bed, Bree sleeping soundly - the big day had worn her out - beside her, Rey stared at the photo that was now Bree’s lock screen. The three of them, grinning, hair mussed and sandy, but happy. As if they’d been a loving family for Bree’s entire life instead of just a few, tumultuous, emotional days.

There was something about being with Bree that made everything else fall away, all the trouble, all the doubt, all the worries. Rey was able to forget and fall into the lovely daydream of familial life. It seemed to be that way with Ben, too. His smile came more easily, lines apparent at other times disappeared when Bree needed him, he joked and made her laugh; Rey didn’t think she’d ever seen him so carefree as when he carried Bree piggyback to the car.

If they moved to Chandrila, there might be more days like today.

The only problem was, if there were more days like today, even with its trouble, Rey wouldn’t be able to stop herself from falling more in love with Ben.

_More?_

Yes, more. Because she’d never truly stopped.

**Author's Note:**

> Follow my writing blog [Zoa Writes](https://zoawrites.tumblr.com/) or my twitter account [StarToured](https://twitter.com/StarToured) for updates!


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